


Cold Shoulder

by CeeceePepper



Series: 32 Degrees of A Deeper Meaning [1]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, Implied Roadrats, It was Roadrats before Mei showed up, Junkrat has BPD, M/M, Mei suffers from PTSD, Multi, Other, Roadhog is just a supportive love tbh, and now its a threesome, might get smutty later who knows, there's also implied tracer/d.va shhh, theres also a LOT more Mei/Junkrat than I intended, who am I kidding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2017-08-27
Packaged: 2018-07-14 02:16:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 35,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7148264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CeeceePepper/pseuds/CeeceePepper
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Mei wakes from the Cryogenic stasis, she finds that the world is not as it used to be. She has lost her grip on the times and her social skills have suffered. While in Britain in search of Tracer or even a hint of any remainder of Overwatch, Mei stumbles upon Junkrat and Roadhog, who are international criminals. Upon finding out there's another found activity of Talon, Mei receives the call she's been waiting for, but she's out of time. Tough times call for tough measures, and Mei decides to join them in their journey around the world: for the sake of the climate, of course.</p>
<p>Not that she can't have some distractions along the way.</p>
<p>[CONTAINS A LOT OF ROADRATS, AND MEIHEM]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meetings with Humanity

Mei hadn't been able to find many people from Overwatch since she'd be awake. Ever since the cryogenic array had failed, her companionship and social skills had become jaded, and her grip on what was going on in the world had slipped. She wanted to know what had happened to her world, the one she fell asleep in, but that world had long since passed.

 

She had found some people from Overwatch, though. She'd been able to contact two.

Tracer, and Roadhog.

 

Two she never thought she'd actually communicate with, anyway.

 

Tracer was nice, but so far away. When Mei flew into Britain to see if she could find anyone, Tracer was off doing something else in France and didn't have enough time to get a trip to see Mei.

 

And she had stumbled upon Roadhog, on accident, really. They just so happened to be in the same little donut and coffee shop, and she could recognize those scars and fingers from anywhere. Back when Overwatch existed, she remembered having a few chats with Roadhog, as he was a more intelligent and coherent person compared to a lot of the other people she worked with (outside of the climatology, that is).

 

Roadhog had, well to put it simply, become a criminal. Again, perhaps. He was accompanied by the tiny Junkrat, who usually stayed behind and made explosives in his free time.

 

As much as Mei had disliked it at the time, she really had little choice. People from Overwatch didn't get the talk they used to, and with such small options, Mei had to stick with him. They went around the world, and they got places fast; that was something Mei needed to continue studying the climate.

 

And climatology was something she knew disinterested Roadhog's younger counterpart, so by all means she knew he'd never annoy her about it.

 

\---

 

She had followed Roadhog back. As dangerous and scary as she knew the two could be, as they were, yknow, dangerous killers, she could almost assume a lot of the previous Overwatch partners were criminals at this point, too. Except her and a few others, like Tracer.

 

Roadhog was anything but delicate about entering the tiny motel. It was a two bed, one bathroom motel room, that smelled of gunpowder and burnt money. The scent caused Mei to hesitate, but she entered it nonetheless. She had dealt with worse.

 

Roadhog set his bag of food down on the counter of the room, a loud snore cutting through the room. Mei peered around the large man to see Junkrat, still as tiny as ever, sleeping on the little green sofa. His wooden leg was thrown over the back of it, his robotic arm as well, his other hand holding the tellie remote and dangling off the edge.

 

Mei smiled a little, looking to Roadhog.

 

"Does he do that often?"

 

"He does that every day past 5, if that's what you're wanting to know."

 

She found a hard time believing somebody like Junkrat ever even slept, but something about him doing something considerably normal was comforting to Mei. He wasn't completely crazy, she supposed. They were both people.

 

She quietly dropped her bag, and Snowball on the ground (who was in sleep mode), stepping over to the sofa to look him over. He was sound asleep, head tilted back with his hair the same crazy, curly mess as she remembered it to be. She watched him closely, his chest going up and down as he slept. He honestly looked so peaceful, she wished she could snap a picture.

 

But Snowball had turned on, and flitted over near her, making his little beep noises.

 

These noises stirred Junkrat up, his green eyes opening and meeting hers. For a split second, the two didn't move.

 

His eyes grew wide, and in reply, so did hers. The squirrelly man near her jumped and scrambled up, shrieking and holding the remote out as he tried to perch up on the couch, the remote being a weapon.

 

Mei became startled in reply, stepping back and stumbling onto her butt, putting her hands up.

"Junkrat, calm down, it's just Mei." Came a booming voice from the kitchenette area. Junkrat paused, looking her over one more time, before letting out a disappointed breath.

 

"Oh. S'just you." He mumbled, moving to sit back down on the couch. She watched him carefully before getting back up, laughing a little to herself.

 

"Sorry," she replied, "I didn't mean to let Snowball wake you."

 

"Snowball? Who the- oh. The robot."

 

Snowball made his little beeps, spinning around Junkrat's head before going to float back to Mei's bag, clicking into his little container hold at the top.

 

"She's going to be hanging with us for a bit," Roadhog stated from afar, unclipping his mask from the back and tossing it onto the counter.

 

"Mh'kay."

 

Mei watched Junkrat's expression scrunch, almost like a view of jealousy. She wondered why, but the thought was brushed away by Roadhog talking again.

 

"That means no gassing her out with chemicals, and be nice to her."

 

"I got it, I got it, jeezus, 'Hog."

 

"Mmgh..."

 

Roadhog grumbled, picking up a donut and shoving it into his mouth. Mei was going to have to get used to the ramblings, she could tell.

 

"Mei, you can sit on the couch if you want."

 

"Oh. Uh,"

 

She wanted to protest, but Junkrat scooted over obediently to Roadhog's words, and started tinkering with the remote.

 

Mei hesitantly got up, nodding to Roadhog. But she wasn't in Antarctica, and so with that, she kind of realized hoodies weren't necessary.

 

She moved away from the tellie to take her hoodie off, undoing it and folding it up to lay beside her bag, before she moved to sit beside Junkrat. Her blue tank top felt so much nicer to air her chubby body out better than being in her stuffy coat, which honestly, was suffocating in the autumn of Britain.

 

Roadhog carried the box of donuts he had bought over to the two, letting the two on the sofa pick some donuts as he sat down on the bed beside the sofa. Junkrat had picked just a super basic glazed, and Mei had picked a long eclair. Her favorite, if she was honest. Roadhog wasn't picky, so their choices didn't affect what donuts he ate. He just ate.

 

The three sat there, snacking on donuts. And to Mei, it felt oddly normal, despite the fact that the only four in the room were a climatologist, a baby robot, and two international criminals.

Junkrat had taken another one by the time she was halfway down her eclair, noticing he was eating a sprinkled one, this time. Chocolatey, too. She continued eating quietly to herself, noting that Roadhog had fallen asleep with the donut box on the table that separated the two large pieces of furniture.

 

She looked back to note Junkrat trying to get chocolate off his mouth. There were sprinkles in his lap and she supposed it was irritating him. Mei, taking pity, smiled and sat her donut down on her lap, leaning over slightly to paw his hand away.

 

He blinked, looking back at her with a confused look, before she took her thumb and rubbed the chocolate off the corner of his mouth. She smiled, and in reply, she could see a little bit of red coming onto Junkrat's face.

 

He turned away with the little corner of his donut left, making a scrunched expression again.

"...thanks." He said cautiously, as if testing the waters of conversation.

 

"Not a problem." Mei replied, moving to sit back and finish the little bit of her donut that was left.

 

The two sat in silence, eating their donuts and listening to the white noise of the tellie, talking about news that seemed almost as bland and useless as the man narrating it to them.

 

\---

 

When she had woken up from being dozed off, she noted that she was on the spare bed. Well... not a spare, as Roadhog took the entire space of the bed next to her.

 

Which meant that..

 

She turned around, looking over her shoulder to see. She could see the outline of super pale shoulders, curly blond hair. Yes, she was laying beside Junkrat.

 

She could feel him shivering. He was cold? In this? She guessed it could be true, he was from the irradiated outback, after all. As warm as Britain felt to her, it was probably freezing to him. Mei contemplated her actions, before she fully turned around, her arm wrapping around Junkrat to pull him closer.

 

She felt his body stiffen slightly, stop shivering, and then calm against her gentle hold, almost leaning into it. Mei smiled, snuggling back in to the blanketing, and fell back asleep.

 

\---

 

When Mei woke up the second time, she could hear Roadhog making coffee. She could also swear he was humming something.

 

She glanced down in her arms, noticing that Junkrat had made himself plenty comfy in the hold she had gotten him into yesterday. And since she was comfy, she did also notice they were pretty much cuddling. He looked so comfortable.

 

Mei glanced up and gave a little tired wave to Roadhog, who in turn, waved back.

 

"Comfy?"

 

She giggled. "I think he's more comfy than me."

 

"He does that. Get used to that if you're sharing a bed with him."

 

She could only imagine the number of times poor Roadhog probably had to deal with this.

 

“I’m going to have to deal with a lot of things if I stay with you guys, aren’t I?”

 

“More than likely.”

  
She sighed, letting Junkrat resettle into her hold and nuzzle into her neck. His skin was always so cold, she wondered if Junkrat had a climate of his own.

 

“We’re leaving soon, by the way.”

 

“Where to?”

 

“France, probably. Everyone else thinks we’re going to America.”

 

“America isn’t that bad.”

 

“And you haven’t been alive since the Overwatch.”

 

She couldn’t argue with that.

 

\---

 

They had packed their things and left the motel. They packed lightly, besides all the money they had stolen, and Roadhog had suggested letting Mei be carrier if she wanted to help. She gladly helped, her bag being stuffed with minor things like Junkrat’s home-made bombs, some of Roadhog’s little knick-knacks. But the problem arose when they had to all fit on the bike.

 

“Come on, ‘Hog, I don’t wanna sit in her lap!”

 

“Do you want to ride behind me, then?”

 

Junkrat grimaced at his big friend, their argument idle white-noise to Mei, as she was too focused on making sure Snowball was safe.

 

Roadhog had insisted on Junkrat being smaller than Mei, so their position ended up with Mei in the sidecar of the bike, her arms open and waiting for Junkrat to get over himself. It took a good five minutes (and a bit of Roadhog’s threatening) before Junkrat finally complied, sighing as he pulled himself up into the side-car, settling down on top of Mei’s legs. It was a tight fit, but Junkrat usually wasn’t even sitting in the side-car in the first place. He’d usually be standing up, letting wind blow through his hair (or occasionally, bullets, depending on where they were). Roadhog sat on his bike, turned it on, and they were off.

  
At first, Mei was okay with the sitting position. Junkrat was happy to be watching the roads in front of them, on the look-out. It would take them about 4 hours to get to the shore, board the boat, and then it would be another 4 to 6 before they’d get to France.

 

At about the third hour, Mei started to feel a little cramped. Junkrat was slowly trying to find his way into a comfortable sitting position, and Mei was busy trying not to squish Snowball into the back seat. She eventually settled with pulling Junkrat closer, her arms wrapping around him to hold him.

 

He stiffened, his body not used to touch besides Roadhog’s. She felt him do his usual system-- stiffen, pause, and then eventually, he gave into it, leaning back against her.

  
It would be another hour or so before they got anywhere, so for the time being, Mei felt comfortable with her situation.


	2. A Cold War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Junkrat and Mei get some more interactions, with their clashing PSTD and BPD. Also some Roadhog thinking back on some stuff.

****Mei had fallen asleep, yet again, after getting on the boat and getting to their ship’s room. She had things she had to take care of though, and only had her sleep be a short nap before she was snagging food and beverage for the other two. Mei had, ironically enough, insisted that they get on the luxury boats; they had enough money for it, and Mei wasn’t the assuming criminal the other two were. They simply put on disguises, and decided to hide in their room while Mei handled everything.

 

It was only a four hour trip, anyway. She could handle snagging food for them and talking to people.

 

Mei had a tray of food, carefully stepping down to where the rooms were to find their door. It was honestly a really nice place, for what the two had snagged it for. The carpets were wine red, and the walls matched them perfectly, and to her left she could see the ocean in all of it’s beauty. The moon lit perfectly across the water, like a gentle layer of white silk covering the cold blueness underneath. She wished the other two could see it.

 

When she opened the door to their room, however, she kind of wished she was blind.

 

She accidentally stumbled upon Junkrat and Roadhog in a less flattering position: more specifically, Junkrat with his arms wrapped around Roadhog’s darkly tanned neck, the chubby fingers of Roadhog going up the other’s pale body. Pressing that lithe frame against the dark, bloody red walls. Mei’s face turned the same color as the walls, jumping a bit and closing the door with the tray in hand.

 

“Sorry! Sorry,” Mei mumbled, “Oh, my God, sorry..”

 

Mei moved against the wall, holding a hand to her face as she let out a breath. She could hear shuffling, a slap, and then some grumbling. A few footsteps, and then-

 

The door opened beside her, Roadhog giving her an apologetic look as he gestured her in.

 

“Sorry, that was a, uh. Momentary diversion.” He muttered, moving to let Mei in. She stayed red, shaky breath escaping her lips as she nervously walked in, the tray of food in hand.

 

“If you two needed the um, privacy, I could’ve just gone off and done something else…” Mei said weakly, setting the tray on a nearby table, “I didn’t mean to intrude, I didn’t know you all were-... uh..”

 

Junkrat crossed his arms and glanced away from the other two, grumbling about something Roadhog had said.

 

“It doesn’t happen often, I’m sorry.” Roadhog said, looking over the tray. Junkrat became offended, sitting up and throwing a pillow at him.

 

“Doesn’t happen often, my pale arse, ‘Hog!” he cursed, “Just ‘cause some pretty little lady you knew decides to show up, doesn’t mean she gets to ruin _every_ part of my day, dammit! I just wanted a little affection, sooooo sorry that you don’t want Tits McGee knowin’ ‘bout it!”

 

Junkrat’s little outburst caused Mei to pause, her face turning into a more regretful one as she glanced at the platter. She stayed silent, and Junkrat let out an audible breath, looking at the two.

 

“What?! Got nothin’ to say?”

 

“‘Rat, we talked about this-”

 

“We didn’t talk ‘bout nothin’, ya lyin’ piece a bacon!”

 

As soon as Junkrat was getting up and pointing fingers at Roadhog, Mei finally snapped, stepping back towards the door with a loud, offended breath out.

 

“I’m sorry, I need to, I just… Sorry!”

 

She stepped out of the room, slamming it behind her as she felt the cool breeze of the ocean blow against her. It was a nice change, seeing that lovely ocean, soothing her nerves. Mei walked away from the door to go off to the bow. For a luxury ferry, it had such a nice view. Mei could feel her nerves slowly starting to pull away, but it all came rushing back the moment she thought about it again.

 

She got to the edge, where the handles were, the barrier keeping her from the sea. The lights from the lower levels of the ship added extra twinkles against the light, and if she looked up, she could see the stars glinting in their own unique array of light show. It was beautiful, unlike how this night seemed to be unwinding.

 

So, she had come to find an answer: she had actually been a bit of a road bump for the other two, straining their relationship without even meaning to. Without even knowing. Had her social skills become so jaded that she couldn’t tell when she was unwanted?

 

It was fine though, she knew Tracer was in France searching for someone, and she could meet up with her, perhaps in Ceon. She could find Tracer and perhaps stay with her, or maybe she’d go on alone in this world. She didn’t know yet.

 

She noticed a fog against her glasses, and when she pulled them off, there was water on them. Mei had been crying, and she hadn’t even noticed. Honestly, it made her feel worse, if anything. Her hands were shaking, and she was looking at her glasses, letting her breath out. She got away from the edge of the boat, moving to sit against the rails instead.

 

The moment that she could breathe again, she looked at her glasses again. The memory felt so familiar to her, like she’d experienced it before.

 

And she had, back in Antarctica. The same scene, her pressed against the cold glasses of the cryogenic machines, tears staining her glasses as other climatologists struggled to get into their pods. She put her glasses back on and waited, the seconds ticking against her life like a heartbeat, as the chamber slowly opened. Buildings were collapsing, people were dying, she was so afraid; she couldn’t breathe, felt like she was drowning almost, her fingers freezing cold as she slipped into the machine and slammed it closed as quick as she could.

  
She could feel the warm metal of Snowball against her arm, holding it, softly, as she--

 

She came back to her senses, her breath heavy and uneven as she felt tears on her face, looking up at the looming figure over her.

 

Roadhog, against the better idea of staying in the room, had put his disguise back on to come out to her. He was holding her arms in his hands, giving her light shakes with a worried look, calling her name quietly. She let out a shivered breath and blinked her tears away, rubbing them idly with her wrist and looking at him.

 

“Roadhog..?”

 

“Are you alright? What the hell happened?”

 

She looked for words, searched for them, but she couldn’t find the answer. She had felt like she was reliving that awful day she froze herself, the awful day where she… had lost everyone she knew, lost everyone she had been acquainted and friends with for so long, the only other people she’d ever met with the same odd hobbies as she did.

  
The only place she’d ever found solace in being weird, and she was reliving the one single day where it had all gone to hell.

 

Mei evened out her breathing, putting her hand on Roadhog’s gently. “I’m okay,” She managed out, “I’m sorry you had to see me like that.”

 

“No, I’m sorry you had to hear Junkrat’s little outburst. He wants to say sorry. He didn’t mean any of it.”

 

Mei watched him intently, before noticing people were starting to stare. She stood up shakily, holding onto Roadhog for balance.

 

“We’ve got two hours before we are in France… are you going to be alright?”

 

She nodded in reply to Roadhog’s almost-gentle sounding voice, Roadhog starting to lead her away back to the room. When they returned, Junkrat was curled up on the bed, his knees (or knee) pulled up close to him, an irritated expression on his face. It changed though, when he caught eyes with Mei’s tear-stained face. There were tear stains over her soft, pale cheeks, her eyes slightly red and her bangs mussed from crying. Her glasses had tear stains on them as well, and she was holding onto Roadhog’s arm like it was a lifeline.

 

It struck through Junkrat like a bullet, that his little outburst could actually hurt somebody. Especially Mei, who had been indefinitely nice to him the entire time they had been there. She was the one who had held him the first night she was there, wiped donut stains off his face, made sure he was comfortable and well the entire time she was around. And yet it was him who’s outburst caused her harm, caused her to cry. It was the first time in a long while that Junkrat felt something other than drugged up, angry, or flirtatious.

 

He got up and cautiously stepped over to her, hesitance painted on his body language. She stepped, in reply, away from Roadhog, looking away from him as he got closer. His expression changed to match his body language, his eyes flickering up to Roadhog for assistance. Roadhog’s look replied with something Junkrat simply didn’t have experience doing: he had to be gentle with her, not throw her around like some bomb, not pick on or curse at like he did with Roadhog. He had to be careful for once in his life.

 

Junkrat became even more shaky in his movements, a robotic hand coming up near her face, but he quickly changed it out for his other one, not sure if she was uncomfortable with the mechanical hand or not. He nudged her cheek, and she bit her lip before glancing up at him, those dark, coffee-colored eyes staring at him. Though, to Junkrat, they just felt like hands choking him, reiterating that he was clueless and didn’t know what he was doing, that for once he couldn’t just blow his way out of the situation.

 

“Hey, Mate, I’m uh…” He felt like every word was another dagger in his back as he spoke, “‘M sorry I yelled atcha… I just ain’t used to havin’ another person with us. Used to it just bein’ me an’ ‘Hog. Don’t … take it personally, yea?”

 

Mei watched him, rubbing her eyes a bit and nodding.

 

“Yes… I’m sorry I’m intruding on your partnership. I’ll be gone by morning. I promise.” Mei replied, almost dejectedly. Junkrat slightly panicked, looking up at Roadhog for more hints or assistance. He was given a stern look, and he swallowed, before looking back at Mei.

 

“...I… Yea, alright. If that’s what you wanna do… I ain’t gonna stop ya. How about you, uh, get some rest or somethin’?”

 

Mei’s eyes looked him over once, before she nodded again, putting her arms out slightly. Junkrat stared at her in perplexion, before Roadhog’s giant hand came behind him and pushed him forward into Mei’s hug. She wrapped her arms around him, her head coming to rest against his collarbone, as Junkrat stiffened himself yet again. He was still so unused to the hugging and affection, but Mei was so warm and huggable that he replied, hugging her back cautiously.

It felt weird to give affection to anybody but Roadhog, but to Junkrat, there was something oddly alluring to the idea of Mei. Her hugs were warm, and that night she’d ended up cuddling against him, he felt a small spark similar to what he felt when he was laying with Roadhog. It was something that both confused him and enticed him. But for now, the hug would do.

 

\---

 

After their little squabble, Junkrat and Mei had ended up getting along quiet well. He was talking to her about the ingredients he used for bombs, Mei eating on the food she had brought (again) and listening to him with intent. Junkrat hadn't felt so spoiled in quite a long time; it wasn't like Roadhog would listen to his blathering for very long. Mei was actually interested in what he had to say.

 

She, in turn, started to talk about the climate and what she had discovered the very small times she had been in Australia, after the place turned into a radioactive nightmare. The fact that she could get confirmation and notes off of Junkrat was helpful too, as she could write things down and take notes later.

 

Roadhog simply watched. Every time Mei started to get an idea, she'd reply with another idea for Junkrat to follow, and the two would laugh and Junkrat would start seeing if things could work as Mei believed. It was refreshing to see a genuine grin on Junkrat's face, a laugh that wasn't just maniacle, but had a heart behind it. Roadhog smiled under his mask as he ate at some cookies.

It was almost as if the scenario from before had never happened. As if Mei hadn't cried, had a panic attack. As if Junkrat hadn't been suffering from the lack of attention, hadn't yelled and fought Roadhog. As if Roadhog hadn't had to go retrieve Mei, holding her to his side protectively, her warm hands pressed nervously to his arm like a lifeline. As if none of that had ever happened, Mei and Junkrat were laughing and smiling, perfectly fine.

 

They only had a little bit of time left together, if Mei had kept her word of leaving by morning. He knew they'd have to find a place to sleep, just for one more night. The thought brought up a pain he hadn't felt in a long time. More or less, it was the same pain he felt when he believed he could possibly lose Junkrat. The pain he felt when he'd wake up from his nightmares. The pain he felt when he was Mako Rutledge, when he wasn't just Roadhog.

 

He remembered those feelings, like they happened a few seconds ago. Seeing Junkrat fall off a boat and into the water, blood staining the damned lake. Remembering the feeling of emptiness when he jumped into that water after him, damned to the almost-same fate as he wasn't built for finding corpses in the water. The pain he felt sitting on a shore, holding that tiny, almost-corpse in his arms, blood on his hands and dispair in his head. Yes, Roadhog remembered those stinging pains in his heart, the claws digging into it and causing it to bleed. Causing the bleeding heart and compassion he had for Junkrat, the feelings he'd closed off when he had put that mask on years before. That same feeling was pulling at him, at the idea of this wonderful woman leaving them behind. It made sense, though; she was a climatologist, and they were international criminals. Those two things didn't mix. She'd find Tracer, or perhaps D.VA, and she could continue on with her normal life. Find somebody to keep her company while she tried to save the world from the hands of the idiotic civilians that inhabited it. Meanwhile, Junkrat and himself would be stealing more things, causing more havoc on the planet this woman was trying to save. Making her job just that much harder.

 

It just wasn't meant to be, and Roadhog knew that. As much as he didn't want to. He wished he could tell the universe to go fuck itself, to let Mei stay. She had her own life, though.

 

He wished he could take a picture. Mei had Junkrat under her arm, ruffling his hair and laughing; Junkrat was keeling over, trying to get her off and grinning like a madman, metal hand hitting her in the side playfully to tap out. It was moments like these that Roadhog knew he would have to try and forget, to have to push to forget so it wouldn't hurt as much.

 

He wished.

 

\---

 

They left the boat, around 4am. It was so early, and they were one of the very few getting off the ferry with an automobile. They piled into Roadhog's bike, and left. Mei had called in a room, and paid for it with what little she had (despite the other two going against the idea). She would meet Tracer in the morning, and part ways with them. It was her plan, but the only person who had forgotten the idea was Junkrat, who was too busy trying to hold Snowball to get a better look at him while they drove.

 

They arrived at the hotel, Mei letting them get checked in while the other two unpack in their shared room. She stayed outside, looking at the city. They had been at the edge of Ceon, right by the waters, like she wanted. It would be an easy getaway for them in case, and it gave her the ability to look out and see it. Their room had a view of the waters, too. It was nice.

She entered the hotel again, saying hello to the Omnic woman who was behind the counter, and went to their room. It was on the third floor, down the hall. The hotel had a tan palette to it, the carpets a dark brown that went perfectly with the beige and white walls.

 

Mei entered their room, cautiously, to see that Roadhog had already dropped and had fallen asleep. Junkrat was playing around with Snowball, who was teasing him and floating to placed Junkrat couldn't get to. Mei smiled, shutting the door behind herself, as she got acquainted with the room's setting.

 

She walked past the two, and Junkrat paused and held Snowball in his hands as she passed. Almost as if he wanted to say something.

 

Mei simply left to the balcony, to see the ocean again. There were chairs there, and she happily sat down to look it over again. She pulled her phone from her pocket, and entered the number of who she wanted to talk to.

 

"Allo, dearie. Quite early, aren't we?" Came Tracer, in a sleepy and quiet voice.

 

"Yes, I'm sorry... I just... We're all set on this side. Hotel right by the water, the edge of Ceon."

 

"Oooh, yeah. I know that area. I'll probably be over to that side about... eleven-ish? I've got some things I'm still finally taking care of."

 

"Yeah... Sounds alright."

 

"Alright, love. Talk to you later, hm?"

 

"Of course.... Tracer?"

 

"Yup yup?"

 

"I missed you."

 

An audible coo. "Aww. I missed you, too, Mei."

 

"Talk to you later."

 

"Bye bye~."

 

A click came, not from her phone, but from the door. Mei blinked, glancing back to see Junkrat poking his head from the doorway.

 

"Mei... You, uh, sleepin' anytime soon?"

 

"Perhaps. I'm not sure yet." She replied hesitantly, looking back at her phone as she hung up on the sleepy Brit.

 

"You probably should."

 

"Probably."

 

Junkrat let out an audible huff. Around this time, he hadn't gotten any sleep, either, so the filter of talking he had before was completely thrown out the window. He walked from the door, finding his way behind the chair to throw his arms around her neck and pull at her, suprisingly gentle about the gesture.

 

"Oi, come on, ya ain't gonna be sleep deprived if I can help it," Junkrat hissed, half-heartedly irritated.

 

Mei paused. He was worried about her, perhaps? It made her smile a little, patting his arm as she moved to get up. Junkrat let go, Mei stretching a bit as she stood, before she turned around. Junkrat, for once, was standing straight up. It really emphasized the height difference, as she was almost looking up at him. He looked pretty tired. But then again, when did Junkrat not look tired?

 

She smiled, giving him a light punch on the arm.

 

"Come on. I know you're probably dying to sleep beside your big pig." She teased, moving beside Junkrat to go inside.

 

When she got inside, Mei removed her hoodie again, letting her tank top air out how stuffy she felt in the hood. She fanned her tank top, starting to untie her shoes with her free hand, as Junkrat awkwardly made his way over. He sat on the bed's space beside her, testing the grip of his mechanical hand, as a way to seem idly busy. She thought it was cute.

 

She glanced over every few seconds or so, noticing he was slowly getting a little more pink in the face. He was also getting more and more agitated and anxious the longer she took, so she unlaced her shoes quickly and got them off, glancing to him. Mei set a hand on his worriedly, her eyes finally exploring the side of his face. He physically hitched, letting out a heavy breath as he glanced at her, biting his lip.

 

He let out an audibly-nervous chuckle.

 

"Was ah, kind of not wantin' to lay with 'Hog tonight.. If that's alright with you. I mean, I wouldn't-"

 

"Sure, Junkrat."

 

"Eh?"

 

She smiled, letting out a small laugh herself, as she let go of his hand. She started undoing her hair, and Junkrat paused.

 

"So, I mean, we can-?"

 

"Yes, I'll cuddle with you."

 

She could hear the smile in his awkward little laugh as he got up and dissapeared from her eyeview. She let her hair down, the dark waves falling to her chest and shoulders, and she took her glasses off, folding them gingerly to set them on the bedside dresser.

 

When she went to turn, she couldn't, as Junkrat was behind her and hugging her waist, his head setting against the back of her neck. It was her turn to pause, her breath pulling into her lungs as if it were on fire. What was he doing?

 

"Is it true?"

 

She glanced back.

 

"Is what true?"

 

"You're leavin' tomorrow."

 

Mei wet her lips, taking in a breath before calming her slightly-strained nerves. Why did he want to know? What did he care?

 

"Probably. I was going to stick with Tracer, and maybe start working more towards my goal I had before I fell asleep."

 

She felt Junkrat's hold tighten slightly, a small nod from him.

 

"...Alright."

 

It sounded almost defeated, if Mei was thinking and hearing correctly. She finally had the space to turn around after a moment, trying to move herself on the bed to look at Junkrat, who didn't really want to show his face. Mei wondered why, but only for a moment, before Junkrat was hugging her tightly, arms wrapped around her like a binding. She paused, her face near his collarbone, the scent of gunpowder all over him. He set his head on hers, and as awkward as the position was, she hugged back as best she could.

 

"What wrong, Junkrat? Why are you-"

 

"I'm gonna fuckin' miss ya, is that a problem?" He snapped, instantly regretting it as he lowered his voice, "I'm just gonna miss you.... 'S'all."

 

Mei smiled a little, almost sadly, as she gave him a little squeeze. "I'll try to talk to you guys often."

 

"That'll be hard, considerin' we're international criminals."

 

Mei couldn't argue with that. She glanced up at him, feeling a water droplet on her nose, which felt weird. Wait.. was he crying?

 

She pulled an arm away to rub the tear off her nose, looking up at him. He didn't dare look down, pulling his own arm away to rub at his face and wipe the tears away with his wrist. When he had wiped them away, Mei reached up to take his hand and pull it away; with that action, Junkrat finally glanced down. She hadn't really gotten how emotional Junkrat could be at the moments notice, and it was just finally starting to click how bouncy and reactive Junkrat was.

 

"Come on," She spoke softly, "You need sleep as much as I do."

 

"But if I sleep, I won't get to-"

 

The two of them jumped when Roadhog made an audible snorting noise, moving to roll over onto his side on the bed beside them. The two of them had stiffened, but hugged closer, and Mei started to laugh a bit. Junkrat went from confused, to amused, within this time frame, starting to laugh with her.

 

She let go of him, and he let go of her too, so she could start to fix the pillows the way she needed them to be. Mei still snickered in between, and after a good five minutes, she had gotten Junkrat off the bed and was setting it up so she could lay with him. Contently, she lifted the blanket and sheet up, moving to get in.

 

She noticed Junkrat holding onto the bed's corner, fiddling with his prosthetic leg. Mei waited for a moment, before she made her way over, looking to it. It was hesitant, all the movements between them, but she got the prosthetic leg off and gingerly set it nearby, in arms reach of the bed, and gave Junkrat a pat on the back. He grumbled something and moved to the right side of the bed, Mei leaving his side to find her way on the left.

 

Mei got under the covers and snuggled into them. She then turned around, finding where Junkrat was in vicinity, and scooted over. He was laying on his back, looking up at the ceiling. She was going to go and cuddle him, but she was at a loss as to where to put her hands, her arms, anything, so she just stayed on her side and watched him for a bit.

 

'I'm gonna miss you,' He had said. He was going to miss Her, miss Mei who had only been with him for two days. He was going to miss her, the one who he was subtly annoyed by and irritated from for two days. He was going to miss her, the person coming between him and Roadhog's intimacies.

 

She felt him nudge at her hair, and she blinked from her thoughts to look at him. He moved to his side, an arm open for her to lay on. Mei hesitated, before she scooted over, laying on his arm and slinking her own around his waist. He let his other arm wrap around her and hold her close, and Mei nuzzled into the cuddle a little. He was cold, compared to the warm room and semi-warmed sheets, and Mei liked the subtle difference in temperature. That, and he was softer than he seemed. He looked like he'd be the pointest person on earth, but she nuzzled into him anyway, a content sigh coming from her.

 

He let out a breath, and nuzzled her hair a little, and that was the last thing Mei remembered before she fell asleep.

 


	3. Corpse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter has violence, Mei having a fit of PTSD, lots of graphic stuff. If it isn't your thing, just skip to the bottom.  
> \---  
> Mei has a nightmare from the night she froze herself, and the two in the room decide to comfort her. She is recovered by Tracer as well, who holds some hesitance for the two criminals she's been hanging out with.

Mei could feel the coldness acrossed her entire body. People were screaming behind her, she could feel the blood caked on her hair as she pressed against the pod, her hands shaking. Tears poured down her face, as she entered the pod, and activated it. Things paused out, her life turned white, and she dreamt for years. It was a white void, which seemed to have her sentience, but at the same time, didn't. She blankely stared at the whiteness, for God knew how long.

  
She could feel breath entering her lungs, and the pod opened with a sheen, her hands reaching out against the glass. It slipped, and Mei grabbed the side of the opening to balance herself. Her legs felt like jelly, and she fell out of the pod, the inside of it hitting her shins as she fell into the snow-covered metal. She breathed out heavily, her lungs feeling relief and burning, as she tried to wobble her way up. The snow fell heavily acrossed the entirety of the inside of the building, bodys being iced over, blood still frozen against the metal works of the building.

  
Mei sat up as Snowball turned back on, her gasps leaving her as she saw all the pods beside her.

  
Deactivated, and broken.

  
She weakly stood in the snow, shivering and shuffling her way to the other pods, her hands coming up to wipe snow away. Inside the first pod, a good friend of hers. Frozen inside, forever. The look of peace on her face.

  
Mei felt tears coming up, but she held them in for the sake of survival. She knew there would be no rations nearby, either.

  
She moved to the next pod, and then the next, praying to find somebody alive. Or working. She stepped on who knew what, her boots sometimes making a crushing sound in contrast to a snowy or metallic one.

  
"No..." She muttered, "Oh, God, no... N-no..."

  
Mei felt her legs giving out from underneath her again, as she slid down another one of the pods. It held a young man in there, who she could only remember as somebody she had felt connected to. A younger explorer, who was inside his pod, dead and holding onto the necklace she remembered his mother giving to him for good luck. She screamed. She screamed to the Heavens above, she screamed to the pod, she sobbed and stayed put in the snow. Snowball only buzzed in reply, feeling bad for his owner but not being able to help her. She could feel her voice arise again, in her throat.

  
"Oh, God, NO!"

  
Mei startled awake, sitting up in the bed and shoving against the sheets, her breath heavy and shaking as she sobbed, pulling her hands from behind her to hold them over her face. She was shaking, warmth on her face and fingers as tears continued to pour over, out of her eyes as if she'd seen the apocalypse. The scream had startled both Junkrat and Roadhog awake, the two sitting and jerking up with panic, thinking that perhaps the cops had shown up. They hadn't.

  
The Australian's eyes were greeted with a broken woman, Mei leaned over and sobbing into her hands, shaking and trembling in fear. Junkrat was moving to go and comfort her, as best he could, but Roadhog had already gotten up and stepped over.

  
Roadhog moved to put a hand on her shoulder, giving her a little shake. Mei hiccuped and looked up, seeing the outline of Roadhog against the back lighting from the curtains, hiding the remainder of light from the room. She shook and trembled, moving to his touch to hug against him, letting another sob wrack through her body. Roadhog looked to Junkrat, who gave a soft look before getting up, his one leg causing his balance to be poor. He scurried as best as he could to the bathroom to gather some items. Roadhog simply stayed, a free hand coming to pet Mei's hair comfortingly. He knew those tremors that flew through her, the ones that gripped her body like a vice and held her down. Knew those nightmares she was having. Roadhog could only hold her, knowing words would probably fail him while she wasn't focused.  
She cried in Roadhog's arms for a long time, Roadhog simply holding her against himself and waiting it out. Junkrat eventually came back, hopping with a towel and some water, careful, as per the usual idea was. He handed the towel to Roadhog, who let the wimpering and crying Mei look up. He gingerly lifted the towel to her face, wiping her cheeks and letting her take it. She wiped her face down, sniffling and hiccuping in the tandem she had before.

  
She looked up to Roadhog, who had his mask off. Besides the one single time before, she had never seen Roadhog clearly without his mask on. He had chubby features, his eyebrows thick and white like the rest of him, scruff on his chin. A button-y like nose, and dark eyes that showed layers of worry for... her.

  
"Are you alright?" Came that deep voice, the one that echoed through her entirety and felt like an earthquake.

  
She nodded weakly, setting her head back on his chest to let out a breath, and another hiccup. She could see from there, that Junkrat had been standing around, holding the edge of the bed for support while he watched her, worry painted on his face as Roadhog had. It was something she hadn't seen for so long.

  
Mei gave him a look and hiccuped, Junkrat eventually moving over to her side of the bed, to give her a hug as well. Both their arms wrapped around Mei, she simply sniffled, letting her sadness and panic dissolve into a silence that filled the room quicker than water filled an empty container. That was how she felt, currently. Like an empty container, and their hug was water, pouring in like madness and giving life, filling her up to the brim with things she couldn't think of at the time, things she didn't even want to think about right then and there.  
But she couldn't deny the beat in her heart that came in reply to their warmth.

  
\---

  
She had fallen asleep, yet again. When she woke up, the other two were active in picking up the peices of what they owned, cleaning up after themselves and eating as they hopped around. As far as she could tell, Junkrat had taken a shower, and Roadhog had accidentally turned on Snowball. They had packed their things up, their duffle bag on the bed, along with Mei's things on the edge of her bed. They were neat, the way things were put away. Her hoodie was folded up, almost perfectly, on top of the bag, her boots beside the bed.

  
Mei sat up, rubbing at her eyes. She felt gross. She felt empty. She felt upset.

  
She put her glasses on, getting up. Junkrat stopped what he was doing, clipping bombs, to look at her with worry. Roadhog eventually stopped packing his things as well, to look at her. He had the mask back on.

  
Mei simply balanced herself, and walked to the bathroom they had. She needed a shower, and she felt absolutely awful.

  
She shut the door behind herself, letting that wall build between them as she pulled her tanktop up, her hair mussing as she let the clothing fall to the floor.

  
Outside, Roadhog looked to Junkrat, and Junkrat simply let out a huff.

  
"Do'ya think she'll really be okay? All by herself in this place?"

  
"It's not like we can tell her no, Junkrat. She's her own woman."

  
Junkrat grunted in reply. "Yea, well, she's definitely not forgettin' who she _used_ to be."

  
"She shouldn't." Roadhog hissed at his irritated friend, "She was a world-renowned climatologist. She did things most people can't even fuckin' _comprehend_. And she's... one of the last ones out there."

  
"Last ones? The fuck happen' to the others?"

  
"They _died,_ 'Rat. Everybody but her. She's the only one left from her trip." Roadhog growled, "She's all alone, and if she needs to get away from us to do her job, then by all means, let her. She'll be with Tracer, and she'll be _safe_."

  
Junkrat's metal hand clenched, the metal tinking against each other and slightly creaking as he did.

  
"Seems to me like the last thing she needs to be is alone."

  
"That's not our place to say, Junkrat."

 

Junkrat finally threw his bomb vest down, making a loud noise of frustration as he turned to Roadhog.

  
"Really, Roadhog?! Is it not our fuckin' place to say?! I don't know about you, but I don't want to let her leave, I don't fuckin' want her to leave us behind to save the fuckin' planet; I don't care _what_ fuckin' planet she's trying to save, I just want to save her, Hog!"

  
Junkrat felt tears bubble up, but the emotion was quickly replaced with fear as Roadhog made his signature snarl, looking over his shoulder to glare at him.

  
"Do you think, for one _fucking_ second," Roadhog grimaced, "That I _want_ to let her go? That I _want_ to part ways and let her save the world? It's what she was meant to fuckin' _do_ , 'Rat, we can't fuckin' stop her. And the last thing I need right now..."'

  
He stepped closer to Junkrat, Junkrat cowering a bit as he watched Roadhog.

  
"The last thing I need right now, is to lose you over something like this. So, calm the fuck down, and think for once, Jamie."

  
Junkrat's breath hitched at the use of his name, and he let out a sigh before nodding.

"Alright... Fine. You win. I won't fight against it." Junkrat muttered, "But I want to keep her contact... if we even can. I want her _safe_."

"I know you do." Roadhog finally calmed, "I do, too."

  
\---

  
Mei exited the bathroom, her outfit back on and her hair in a towel, her soft hands rubbing the towel against her hair. It would curl up and probably get really poofy by noon, so she needed to bun it up pretty soon. She looked up to the two in the room, who were rather close and giving worried looks to each other. Junkrat smiled and snickered at her, and she paused, giving him a quirked look before shaking her head. No sense in trying to figure out the madman's thoughts now. Roadhog turned to look at her as well, but she couldn't figure out what he was feeling, since he had the mask on.

"Time?"

  
"About 11."

  
Mei cursed to herself and walked over to beside the bed, putting her glasses on and getting her hair band, starting to put her bun up. She did so silently, before finding her hair pin and shoving it through her bun.

  
She looked up, Junkrat and Roadhog looking to each other, before parting to do their things again. Junkrat picked up a messy bomb vest up and started to fix it again, and Roadhog walked towards his side of the bed to get things ready.

  
A few minutes later, she heard a knock at the door that scared most of them.

  
"Calvary's here!" came a cheery voice, and Mei laughed a little to herself. The fear in Junkrat and Roadhog's eyes didn't cease though, and when Mei let the lock open, Tracer popped her head in. She was consideraby shorter than the rest of them.

  
The moment she caught eyes with Junkrat, she activated her Chronal Accelerator, snatching Junkrat from the room and toppled him, Junkrat squealing as he was stolen from Roadhog's side. She pulled her gun from her side and held it up to him.

  
"What're you doing with Mei?! Were they holding you hostage?!" Tracer said, Junkrat trying to push her off, before Tracer grabbed his arms and held them above his body. Mei shrieked, running over and pushing Tracer off of Junkrat, Roadhog standing there idly with pity.

  
"Tracer, off, off, he's friendly!"

Tracer let out a breath, her gun on the floor beside her. She looked at Mei in disbelief.

  
"Mei, you know who he is, right?! International-"

  
"An international criminal who just so happens to have taken care of me while I've been lost in Britain!" Mei retorted, holding her hand out to Junkrat, who took it and grinned at Tracer while being pulled up.  
Mei stood and helped Tracer up, Tracer giving Junkrat a dirty look. Junkrat stuck his tongue out at her.

  
"Look, it's not that it matters. We'll be letting them go soon enough, I'll be with you."

  
"Let them go? Mei, they're murderers, crazed murderers! They stole the Crown Jewels, they-- by the way, where are-"

  
"Don't." Mei said sternly, "They're my friends. Just... let them go. Okay? That's all I ask."

  
Tracer gave her a long, hard look, before she nodded.

  
"Alright, fine. But you're coming with me. Come on down. We've gotta get going."

  
Mei nodded, looking to the others as she stepped away from Tracer to gather her things.

  
"Come on, guys."

  
Junkrat gave Roadhog a conflicted look, before he picked up a duffle bag nearby. Tracer simply stared at them, long and hard, before leaving the room.

  
\---

  
Mei got to the front door. She had her bag with her, Snowball packed and asleep on her tank. Roadhog and Junkrat were hidden in disguise, getting the bike ready to go. It had been covered by a sheet.  
Tracer was talking idly to Mei, before she turned to talk to the other two. Tracer could feel something in the bottom of her stomach, churning. A worry that she had grown to know whilst outside. And it was active. Whatever it was.

 

Mei looked to Junkrat and Roadhog, who watched her intently.

  
"Look... I. Thank you, for letting me tag along." Mei spoke softly, "For dealing with me, and dealing with each other. I hope we can see each other again sometimes soon."

  
"Yeah.." Junkrat replied, "I hope we can see you again, too."

  
Mei smiled, looking between the two. Her smile carried a layer of sadness behind it that she wished she could wash away.

  
Tracer felt something in the air, and she looked around quickly.

  
"I'll miss you." Junkrat hesitantly spoke, glancing away.

  
"Me too." Roadhog muttered.

  
Mei let out a breath, a smile coming wider acrossed her face as she stepped forward, hugging them both.

  
"I'll miss you guys, too." She said, moving to her side to give Junkrat a kiss on the cheek. He grew red and giggled, Roadhog lifting her up to give her a hug. Mei smiled and gave him a cheek kiss, too. Right on a little scar on his face.

  
He put her down, and she laughed as she smiled to the two.

  
"Thanks, guys."

  
Tracer spawned off, her ghosted outline behind Mei. Mei turned, blinking.

  
"Tracer-?"

  
Junkrat's eyes met with a twinkle in a nearby abandoned building, and his breath caught.

  
"Mei, watch-"

  
She felt it.

  
The bullet pierced through her chest, feeling it go through her and into the canister behind her, the icy air starting to pour out as she breathed in a deadly breath, feeling blood pulling up to her throat and coughing out as she fell back. She watched her vision slowly fade, a panicked group of voices and a faded, dying beeping.

  
The Widowmaker.


	4. Can't Possibly Be

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so it's mostly just some minor plot development and a LOT of fluffy domesticities... If that's not your thing, just skip this chapter. A bit of Junkrat/Mei, though this one delves more towards Roadhog/Mei as Roadhog hasn't gotten a lot of fic time..

Tracer cried out as she knocked the bitch off the side of the wall, realizing it was, yet again, too late. Widowmaker had gotten her, and she laughed as she pulled herself up with a zipperline, shooting at Tracer one last time as Tracer had slipped from her.

Widowmaker threw Tracer down towards the hotel, getting into the abandoned building and making a run for it. She had wanted to snipe out Tracer, but she realized the opportunity she had, killing off one of the few climatologists left and, in the same spot, she had killed one of Tracer's few good friends. Payback for interferring with her work in the first place.

When Tracer had been shot, it knocked against her goggles, richocheting somewhere else. It knocked her to stars, though, and she only felt the real world again when she slammed into Junkrat, both of them hitting the wall of the hotel.

Roadhog, who seemed to be the only one able to actually do anything at the moment, pulled his mask from his coat. His disguise didn't matter anymore, anyway. Roadhog dropped to his knees, throwing a canister against the mask, taking off Mei's glasses off to get the mask on her face, trying to find her hand to grip.

"Mei," Roadhog said, in a voice that almost sounded panicked, "Mei, come on, listen to me, breathe, breathe it in, come on,"

Tracer lifted herself off of Junkrat weakly, and rolled over onto the ground by him, feeling the blood trickling down her forehead. Her goggles had been shattered too, a big crack in them. She held her head and tried to get up. Her eyes peered over to the others.

There was a bit of dust from hitting the building, but Junkrat definitely wasn't doing as well as she was. He was knocked out, blood running down from many different parts of him. Oh, God, the poor dude was going to bleed out. Tracer panicked, watching the police of France starting to gather to help them out. But she knew, Roadhog and Junkrat were criminals; they'd be taken away immediately.

"...Hog," Tracer mumbled, "Grab these two and get outta here... I'll catch up with you and .. get you a safe house."

Roadhog looked back at her.

"How do I know I can trust your ass?"

Tracer let out a struggled breath.

"Because... I care about her... too."

Roadhog hesitated, before he nodded, picking up Mei in one arm and Junkrat with the other. He'd seen the other much worse before. Tracer could hear sirens in from the ringing in her ears. Roadhog uncovered the bike, got Mei and Junkrat in the sidecar, and he looked back at her.

"You'd better keep your promise." Roadhog said grimly, as he started the bike and hopped onto it, trying to find a route away from the cops.

"Don't worry..." Tracer laughed, weakly, "Calvary's here."

She watched Roadhog speed away without her, and she let out a cough as she lifted herself from the dusty ground.

\---

Roadhog had never driven so quickly in his life. He found a parking garage, a packed one, and found himself hidden underground, holding the two closely and guarded, while he heard cop cars blaring above them. When the blares had faded away, Roadhog let them go. He cleaned the blood off of the two, Mei's wounds finally healed a good amount, while he had gotten Junkrat moderately concious. He made Junkrat inhale those nasty, thick fumes through the mask, and Junkrat audible gagged a few times while doing so, regaining his mind.

As soon as he did, Junkrat went into a panic.

"Oh God, aw Hell, 'Hog, is she awake?! Is she okay, oh God," Junkrat said, mania weaving through his syllables as he looked Mei over, Roadhog lifting her from the sidecar to lay her on the ground, on a jacket of his. She looked so tiny compared to it.

Blood was staining her tanktop, and he had gotten the jacket off of her to see her. The wound had shut, and the ice tank was empty. She was breathing, quietly, but it was better than nothing. Junkrat looked her over, shoving Roadhog's large hands away to paw at her and look her over. He held her face in his hands, and took in a large breath.

"God dammit, if she's dead, or gonna die, I'm literally gonna blow this entire fuckin' buildin' up, oh, God," Junkrat muttered, pulling his hands away to let Roadhog investigate more.

"You watch her," Roadhog grunted as he got up, moving to look through their bag, "I have to call Tracer so we can find a safehouse for the night."

"That lyin' cunt, if she hadn't been there, if she'd just gotten her stupid Britty nose outta our business-"

"-Then Mei would be alone in the world, so shut the fuck up." Roadhog replied coldly, tiny phone in his hand as he dialed for Tracer.

\---

  
It was the boy, the young one who she had found dead in his pod.

"You aren't supposed to be here," He said, suprise in his voice.

"I probably am, I can't keep escaping my fate." Mei replied.

"You're supposed to live on in our idea to save the world."

"But I'm only one person."

"But nobody else would be able to do this." The boy said with a smile, before he gave her a hug. One she found familiar.

Mei sat up with a start, coughing up harshly as she regained conciousness. Her vision was blurry for a moment, but she blinked it away, her breathing becoming easier the more she did it. Her eyes were met with a dark bedroom, a box fan on the most gentle setting on a nearby table. The room seemed fancy, a small candle lit on the bedside table. The bedsheets were blue, and really soft. Her fingers ran over them, then she breathed in. Her hand reached up to her chest and felt at the spot on her chest, between her breasts. A scar, but it had healed.

How the fuck was she alive? How had she escaped death's grip again?

She didn't deserve it.

Mei got up, wobbling a bit. She was in just her leggings and her tank top, her bra had been taken off. She supposed it was for the best, though, considering the spot where she was shot was between her breasts.

She exited the bedroom, finding a nice, open house to greet her. Candles were lit, here and there, and there were dark curtains covering practically every window in the home. She noticed a metal hand on the sofa nearby, a television gently lit and barely audible. Mei walked over, noticing that Junkrat was sitting there lazily with the remote in his hand. He sounded bored. Mei could hear Roadhog moving things in some other rooms, and she felt conflicted. Go talk to Roadhog or Junkrat first?

She decided upon the latter, moving around the back of the sofa to gently wrap her arms around Junkrat's neck and set her head on his. He jumped, glancing down at the arms to gasp. Mei let go, Junkrat turning around from the couch to pull himself up, hands holding the back of the couch.

"Mei?! You're awake-" He said in disbelief, "How are ya feelin'? Are you okay?!"

He sounded so afraid. He looked so worried. It made Mei's heart warm.

"I'm okay." Mei said quietly, smiling. "Where's Tracer?"

"Chasing that Widow bitch." Junkrat said in disdain, before he got back on the topic of her, "Are you sure you're okay?"

She nodded, and in his excitedment, Junkrat went and grabbed Mei to pull her into an almost crushing hug. Mei laughed, giving him a hug back as best she could. She sucked in a breath, and then sighed.

When she opened her eyes, she had to pause. Junkrat pulled away, hands on her shoulders to pull her in, and gave her just a random kiss. For no reason. Just a small kiss, his chapped and smaller lips giving her squishy and warm lips a nice and lovely little kiss.

"Oh, my God, ya don't know how glad I am to hear you're okay, I-"

He blinked, and so did she, the two turning red as they paused. A weird form of air coming between the two of them.

"Really, guys?"

The booming voice of Roadhog came from the nearby hall, Roadhog holding a box in his arms, "I leave you alone for five minutes, Mei comes out just fine, and you're kissing on her?"

Junkrat grew more red, letting her go to curl up on the sofa, showing irritance. "Yeah, well, you weren't doin' anything, ya puss."

"Because I respect boundaries," Roadhog shot back, setting the box down. "You okay, Mei? You can rest all you want. Tracer gave you this place, practically."

Mei swallowed, and laughed awkwardly. "Yeah, I'm fine. And this is actually an old base of ours, so it's fine. You don't have to clean up anything."

"Yes, well, stuff was bothering me."

"Have at it, then, I suppose."

\---

Later that late night, Junkrat had fallen asleep on the couch. Mei still occasionally felt at her lips, wondering what it would be like to actually legitimately kiss Junkrat. Probably not very pleasant, or perhaps he was just unskilled. Or maybe he was highly skilled. She'd never know. Now that she thought about it, besides Junkrat, she hadn't really given any attention to Roadhog this entire time.

She got up off the couch, looking down the hall. There was probably a spare bedroom there he was holed up in, right?

Mei walked down the hall, knocking on the one closed door at the end. She heard a grunt from inside, some shuffling, and then the less than gleeful, "Come in."

Mei opened the door, peeking her head in. The room was illuminated with two candles, and a very dimly-lit Roadhog. His mask was off, and he had his hair down. It was fluffy and white, kind of wavy. It looked nice in the candlelight. She smiled, entering and shutting the door behind herself. He looked tired, leaned over the edge of the bed with his hands leaned against his knees. He rubbed at his eye and looked at her.

"Do you need something?"

"No, actually," Mei said as she walked over, looking him over, "I was going to ask you something."

"Go ahead." He replied, tiredly.

"Are you okay?"

Roadhog blinked, and looked at her perplexedly, a greyed eyebrow raising. It excentuated his scars, specifically one over his eye. Perhaps somebody had tried to take his eye out? Or perhaps a childhood mishap? The latter made Mei smile internally.

"What do you mean?"

"You're just... You've been handling all the major things, it seems, since I fell asleep. Taking care of Junkrat, taking care of you, taking care of... well, everything," Mei muttered back, "Don't you ever get a break?"

"I read, sometimes."

"That's not a break."

"It is to me."

She looked at him sternly. "You know what I mean."

"I do." Roadhog replied, a smile pulling on his face. It made Mei blush a little, seeing that lazy smile in the candlelight. His chubby, scruffy face made such a nice smile. She wished she could see it more often. It felt weird, she thought. Liking two people so much. She really did like them.

"You have a nice smile." Mei thought outloud.

"Hm?" Roadhog looked back at her, pausing.

She paused in reply to his, and then she smiled sheepishly, glancing away.

"I... said, you have a nice smile..." Mei hesitated. "You should smile more often."

"I do. I just usually have the mask on."

She rolled her eyes with a smile and shoved him playfully. "Well, then, keep the mask off more often."

"Why should I?"

"Because I want to see your smile more often." Mei said, looking up to grin playfully at him. Roadhog let up a snort, glancing away. She could almost swear the big ol' guy was blushing.

"I think the more important question currently, is are you okay?" Roadhog eventually got out, looking at her with his coffee-colored eyes.

"I am," Mei reassured him, "I'm pretty sure I'll be fine with this nice little healing you got me to go through.. Which, by the way, thank you for."

"For what?"

"Saving me."

Mei stood up, looking at Roadhog. His eyes followed her shyly, his eyes looking her up and down for signs of what she might do.

"Here, close your eyes."

"Hm, why?"

"Just do it, you big piglet."

Roadhog snorted, shutting his eyes. "Alright, alright."

Mei smiled, "Thank you for saving me."

She leaned forward, getting on her tip-toes to get to the much larger other's face, her hands coming up to his chubby cheeks to pull him down, pressing her lips to his. Roadhog physically paused for a moment, before she felt him smiling into it, his much larger hand coming to set on top of hers, leaning down so she wasn't reaching so high.

She almost purred, and when he moved down so she didn't lean up so much, she did anyway, pressing into the kiss a little more. It wasn't full of sparks, and suddenness, like when Junkrat had given her a small kiss. This was warm, loving, almost like it was pulling her closer to him. Her fingers came up to card through his pale hair, Roadhog's fingers moving from her hands to pull her waist a little closer, setting against her hips.

The two pulled away for breath, and Roadhog gave her a kiss on the forehead, a huff coming from him. She snickered, knowing that she had been the one to make the big warrior all breathless and shy.

Roadhog simply gave her a nuzzle, before letting her go; Mei gave him a smile in return, one last peck on the lips before she gave a wave.

"I should let you sleep.. I don't want you to wake up cranky."

Roadhog answered with a breathy, deep laugh. "I always wake up cranky."

Mei grinned, "Yes, but I don't want you more cranky than the usual."

"Maybe I wouldn't be so cranky if you... perhaps stayed?"

Mei paused, looking at him in suprise. He seemed rather calm about asking, his face not contorting in embarrassment like Junkrat's would. She let out a sigh, smiling as she nodded.

"Alrighty... Maybe I will."

"I won't squish you, promise."

Roadhog simply scooted over to the edge of the bed, letting Mei climb over into it, finding her way into the covers. She moved to the edge, glancing back to see Roadhog pressing a hand to the matress, pulling himself up onto it and laying beside her. She felt so small beside him, curling into the blankets more. He simply laid on them, not bothering to use the blanket. She felt a warm, large hand pull around and hold her closer, warmth behind her as well coming from Roadhog.

"Mmh," Mei muttered, "Roadhog?"

"Mhm?"

"What's your actual name?" She asked quietly, "It can't possibly be Roadhog."

A long pause came before he answered. "Mako."

"Mako?"

"Mako Rutledge."

She sighed contently. "Mako..."

The name felt nice in her voice, as she dozed off in the warmth she was wrapped in.

\---

Mei woke up early, for once. Since she had already been asleep, she got enough rest for the night. She recognized the warmth around her, and she opened her eyes to look around. She wasn't just with Roadhog by now, as Junkrat had made his way into the room as well, a pillow on the carpeted floor as his hand was on the edge of the bed, holding Mei's free hand that had been laying over the edge. She smiled, glancing back to look at the one holding her. Roadhog was nuzzled into her, curled around to have his face buried in her messy hair, hand still holding her close.

She had to remove herself from the two, though, which did make her sad. She turned around fully, letting go of Junkrat's hand for a moment, to reach up and give Roadhog a soft kiss to wake him up. He stirred, a lazy grumble coming from him.

"Goodmorning," She said softly, "Could you let me go, please?"

Roadhog obliged, letting his heavy arm up to let her go. She smiled, giving him another kiss on the face before sitting up, looking over the edge. Junkrat was sprawled out on the floor, snoring quietly. She thought it was still cute. Mei stepped over Junkrat to go around the bed, finding her glasses on Roadhog's side's table, picking that and her hairband up as she left the room.

Shutting the door quietly behind herself, she moved herself to the bathroom to brush and fix her hair, making sure she looked mildly presentable for the day's start. Tracer (she assumed) was nice enough to put all of her stuff in the safehouse where they belonged. What a love.

Mei eventually did her business and made her way to the small kitchen, turning some lights on in there to view her settings.

A small kitchen, but she could work with it. It was small, but not too small. Basic white fridge, stove, a small brown and green counter between the two. The stove was against the wall, little pans and pots dangling above it. A shelf above all of it, with jars and spice containers. A tiny picture of a tree on the wall, for no reason. Mei smiled at the cute little working space, the remainder of the room mostly counters behind her or the open table area.

She scavenged the fridge. There wasn't a whole lot, there was enough to make a generally okay breakfast. But Mei wasn't all about making a 'general' anything.

She was still healing from her earlier ordeal, the scar on her chest still extremely visible. It would take some time. For now, though, she couldn't just work with what she had. Meaning she had to pick somebody to go with her. Mei retrieved her phone from where it was sat on the counter, with everything else she had. She was about to call Tracer, but her typing was interuppted by the opening of a door and a tired slur.

"G'Mornin'..." came Junkrat, who's hair was even messier than normal, the usual burning fire on the ends out and smoking.

She smiled, looking at the phone. It was ten in the morning, and Tracer was probably busy.

Fine then, she'd just have to take... Junkrat with her. She glanced at him.

"Feel like taking a trip today?"

"Are we leavin' so soon...? Why?"

"Not a trip, just to a local place."

"...Eh."

Junkrat simply walked off towards the bathroom, Mei shaking her head. He'd have to do.


	5. Warmth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY! Unbeta'd, but it's slightly edited as I had time too--- The smut scene that literally so many people requested for it was ridiculous ! The top two voted for things were NSFW Roadrats, and then a NSFW threesome. As Mei is characterized as a virgin, and unmarried in this story, she has no experience in the sexual business -- this is simply a start chapter. With the third being Junkrat/Mei NSFW, I'm going to try and get a chapter in here with her exploring her sexual desires a bit more. For now, enjoy the cuteness and Mei's bored virgin self helping the other two out!
> 
> It starts out as Roadhog/Junkrat, btw. Next chapter will have more plot involved!

Mei had made Junkrat take a shower, before they were going to ever leave. Mei was scavenging her bag, looking for something to wear besides the leggings and tank top she had worn the past two days. She needed to do laundry, too.

It was now almost 11am, mostly due to the fact that it took her thirty five minutes to convince Junkrat to go shower. And another ten to get him to use any of the bath things Mei had, as he was protesting the 'girly-smelling' soaps she had.

It had taken her a God awful amount of time, but Junkrat had eventually complied and Mei could do some laundry. She had snatched Junkrat's clothing while he was showering, and she changed into some thick, stretchy jeans she had and a tee she still had. Her clothes, along with Junkrat's, went into the wash to be clean by the time they got back.

If she was to settle down in this little 'safe-house', and start her work again, she knew she'd have to go shopping soon, for almost everything. She felt a tug on her heart. She would have to start back somewhere.

Though when she thought of such a thing, when Junkrat left the bathroom searching for a shirt and an frustrated and tired noise came from him, she smiled.

The thought of starting somewhere new wasn't so painful seeing him in the picture.

\---

They had left the house. Mei had finally gotten her boots on, and when she had, Junkrat hadn't been able to find a shirt. Not that he was complaining. She instead, gave him a spare hoodie of hers, and let him change his shorts to a pair that weren't so destroyed. The peg leg was definitely a giveaway, but this deep into France, who even know who they were?

She walked about a mile to the nearest, small-town greengrocer, Junkrat's expression becoming one of an afraid child as he stopped walking. Mei looked back.

"Junk--... Jamie?"

"Holy crap."

He was looking at the building in awe. It wasn't anything special, but it was really colorful-- something Mei could assume Junkrat still wasn't used to. His eyes scanned the building, confusion and suprise and curiosity in those eyes of his. She moved to take his robotic hand, pulling him onward.

"Come on, it's even more colorful inside."

"You've gotta be pullin' me leg, mate."

"I'm actually pulling your hand, so to speak."

"You get it."

She dragged him in, getting a tiny basket and moving inside. She had been able to nab some money from Roadhog's god awful amounted stash, and was going to use it for a good cause: food, to keep the two idiots alive. Though idiots was an affectionate term in Mei's vocabulary, now.

Junkrat looked at everything, eventually stopping every few bits to pull Mei's hand and point to something. It went a little something like this:

"What in God's name is that?" He pointed to a pile of gourds.

"That's a gourd," Mei replied, "You cook them and cut them up and eat them."

"...That's fucked up." He commented.

"If a gourd is the worst thing you can think of, this store will be a horror movie for you."

She'd showed him other things he hadn't seen, as well. Currently, the thing he absolutely refused to believe was edible was a kiwi, blueberries, and bananas. Because 'nothing you eat should be furry unless it's skinned'. She didn't bother telling him you ate the inside of a kiwi, not the skin. Mei showed him oranges, too, which absolutely mystified him. Mei could've guessed he'd never seen anything like these things; there were only a few things you could get in the irradiated outback other than bugs bigger than your head or irradiated water.

When Mei passed the candy section, she got stopped by Junkrat again. She thought it was cute, how he gazed at the candy containers like they were made out of gold.

She could spoil him a little, couldn't she?

"What're you looking at?"

"...Oh, uh," Junkrat glanced away from the candy to her, pointing to one of the big containers. "I saw these lil things back 'n the UK, lil gummy sharks 'n worms. Imported from... America, I think."

"I like the turtles."

"Yea... I like the lil worms covered 'n that powdery stuff... Taste better than the regular shiny ones."

"Do you want some?"

Junkrat paused, eyes slowly moving over to look into hers like a very happy child.

"Could I?"

Mei smiled, "Yeah, you can."

Junkrat made this happy noise, moving to scoop Mei's cheeks up and give her another kiss before getting one of the bags and having at those little containers. Mei stood there, blinking for a moment before she came back to her surroundings.

"Hey, don't get too much, okay!"

Junkrat grinned evilly.

\---

When Junkrat and Mei had returned, the two split at the door. Mei walked towards the kitchen to unpack what they had gathered from their shopping trip, and Junkrat moved away to go to the room Roadhog was staying in.

He hadn't gotten to talk to Roadhog. Come to think of it, the current events have been keeping this rather... one-sided with things. Though, last night, when he went to join them, he got to hold Mei's hand from his spot on the floor. It was nice, but he wished the bed had been big enough for him to join them.

Junkrat shyly opened the door, it creaking quietly and making the much larger man in the room look up from his book. The mask was back on, and there were new, much brighter candles being lit in the room. It also smelled of nature -- it made Junkrat's nose crinkle.

"Oi... Roadie? You free?"

"What's up, Jamison?"

Junkrat shivered. Only Roadhog ever got to call him by his full name, and every time he did, it always sent a shiver down his spine. Good or bad, he still wasn't sure.  
"Just... wantin' to talk, I guess."

"Talk? That's new."

"I know mate, Christ, don't cut me off yet," Junkrat snipped, shutting the door behind himself. "I just... I dunno... Urgh!"

He pulled his hands up to ruffle through the hair he had cleaned earlier, fluffing it out back to the crazy mess it always was. Just less dirty, and smelled a lot more like a little girl's best dream.

And yet, when he lifted his hands away from his head, looking back at the other, he was still there. Roadhog hadn't budged. He sat there, still watching Junkrat, a soft rythm of breathing as he waited. Patient, as he usually was with Junkrat. It only frustrated the other further, making him hiss, hands balling up. He wasn't good with words, and when he used words, he usually ended up saying something he didn't want to say. Saying something that meant something else, hurting someone, hurting himself-

Roadhog stood up, walking over to Junkrat to look down at him. Junkrat swallowed, moving his hands to hold his arms, cold metal against pale skin. He glanced away from Roadhog's pig mask, becoming hesitant. He had words, and he had actions, and he had thoughts, and none of the three seemed to want to work right now. Actions wouldn't work, Roadhog was too calm and collected, and he'd ruin the vibe. Thoughts wouldn't work either, because his thoughts were only his. They'd just make him sad, or angry, or something else.

Roadhog's darker hand came up to pull up Junkrat's chin, making him look at Roadhog. There was a stern look from behind the mask, Junkrat knew that much. Whenever Junkrat was having trouble talking, or expressing anything, Roadhog would give him the look at sent shivers down the smaller man's spine.

He stepped back away from the hand, his back gingerly touching the wall. Junkrat could feel the surface touching his back from the hoodie. He could tell.

"I just.." Junkrat started, "We haven't gotten a lot of time... together, just us, since we had Mei enter the group." His voice sounded anxious.

"Is ... that a problem?" Roadhog replied questioningly, his stance not changing. He showed no signs of discomfort or change, something that was throwing Junkrat off. He needed physical confirmation, verbal, anything.

"No!" He snapped, "No, no it isn't, I just... I'm lonely, okay? As much as I love Mei, you're still... I dunno, mine? God, that sounds selfish, donnit? Hell-"

Roadhog paused, before he let out a breathy laugh, Junkrat giving an alarmed look. What the hell was he laughing about? Nothing about what he said was funny, nothing was-

"Is that what this is about?" Roadhog chuckled, "That's nothing to fret about, 'Rat."

"Why isn't it?! You know I've got issues, you know-"

Junkrat felt Roadhog grabbing his wrist, tugging himself forward and leaning down to Junkrat, nearly pinning him against the wall. He could see irises in those pig-mask goggles, and he shivered.

"I know you've got issues, and I know Mei is around, but that doesn't mean I've stopped loving you."

Junkrat felt a breath catch in his throat, and he stiffened a bit to Roadhog's calming words. It felt weird hearing such a sweet line from the other, that when Roadhog was lifting the mask up, Junkrat was losing sight of what the hell was going on. It wasn't until Roadhog started pressing his lips to Junkrat's, that Junkrat finally came back and calmed down. His body eased to the touch, Roadhog letting go of Junkrat's hand so he could find purchase holding the walls behind Junkrat.

Junkrat finally let out a content purr, his hands traveling up the other's large arms to wrap as best as they could around his dark neck, a sweet tongue slipping into his mouth and toying with his own

He could hear Mei starting to make something in the kitchen, through the thinness of the door, but his attention was pulled away by one of Roadhog's hands doing their vacation on his body; those big fingers going up his body, back down, finally stopping at his hips to let Roadhog's thumb knead circles. The larger other finally pulled away, letting out a growl that went through Junkrat's body like syrup, and straight to his crotch. Junkrat shuddered, looking up at Roadhog with lidded eyes.

"You're still mine," Roadhog grunted out, moving Junkrat's head a little to start biting down on his neck, Junkrat hissing and letting out a quiet moan in reply, mechanical arm digging into Roadhog's arm. Not that it did anything, though.

"Y-yours," Junkrat shuddered, "A-all yours, Roadie."

A deep, gruff chuckle came from Roadhog as he pulled off to start biting farther down, giving Junkrat more tingly feelings in reply. If Mei wasn't there, Junkrat would be letting this monster of a man snap him in two on that bed, but something about the woman in the other room's overwhelming presence told them both to keep it on the down low.

Roadhog was making his way down, moving to sit on the floor. He was still face-to-tummy with Junkrat, who was quivering against the wall like a frightened rabbit in anticipation. Roadhog still ran his hands up the others side's, Junkrat pulling his hands away to splay them against the wall and hold himself. The other started biting at his side, his tummy, leaving nips here and there. Junkrat let out strangle wimpers to each one, hissing when Roadhog finally got to his waistband. He could feel himself already getting moderately hard as-is, and was kind of half-wishing Roadhog could just suck him off and get that over with; but part of him wanted to draw this out as long as possible. They walked a fine line of being caught by Mei again, or getting away with this.  
Junkrat felt a little betrayed as Roadhog got up, standing up and wrapping his arms around Junkrat. Confusion set in, before it turned to slight alarm as Junkrat was being picked up, Roadhog taking his free hand to lift the mask completely off and tossing it onto the bed. Junkrat got a good look at that familiar face, the one of his comrade. It was one of those moments where it wasn't just the criminals, Junkrat and Roadhog; they were Jamison and Mako.

He let up another purr as Roadhog gave him a kiss, carrying him over to the bed to set him down gingerly. He looked up at Roadhog, breathing out as their kiss broke, when he felt the bed underneath him.  
"So, how's this gonna go down, Roadie?" Junkrat muttered.

Roadhog was about to speak, but the two of them stopped to hear the squealing coming from outside the door. There was some clanking, some more squealing, and then silence. Junkrat let out a breath, looking up at Roadhog. There was obvious worry in his expression, and Junkrat could feel jealousy pooling at the edges of his mind. He washed it away though when he heard the door click open, a quiet voice coming from the doorway.

"Roadhog, I -.. I might've broken the cake mixer-"

Mei met eyes with the other two, and she slowly began to turn red as she covered her eyes, looking away and hiding her face from the doorway.

"R-right, sorry! Sorry, I'm sorry- I didn't mean to, again, I'll just-"

"Come in."

Roadhog's voice surprised the both of them, Junkrat sitting up and Mei glancing in in surprise.

"What?"

"What?! Roadie, we-"

Roadhog moved to put a hand to Junkrat's mouth, hushing the other immediately. Junkrat hissed into it, giving the other a bite with his pointy teeth. It didn't do anything, Roadhog's calloused yet soft hands not moving much to the other's weak bite. Mei hesitantly stepped in.

"I... You don't... You're..."

Roadhog rolled his eyes, pulling his hand away from Junkrat's mouth to gather up his hands and pin him down, a casual look to his face; it was abnormal for Mei to encounter something like this, and it was especially alarming because Junkrat made a grumble and squirmed against Roadhog's obviously overpowering hold.

"I'll go check it out later, Mei... A little busy here."

Mei rolled her eyes in reply this time, looking away. "Yes. I couldn't possibly tell."

"Want to take over?"

"Eh?"

Junkrat grew red, moving his peg leg over to jab it into Roadhog's stomach. The other grumbled, shuffling and moving the other's tiny leg with a free hand, setting them under his overly large tummy, trapping the other effectively.

"I can leave him with you, and go fix it. You're gonna have to deal with him, though." 

Junkrat finally stopped fighting him, looking away from Mei and Roadhog jealously.

"I... Roadhog, I can't-"

"Of course you can. Or, if you'd prefer, you could just keep us... company."

The last word made Mei, in turn, shudder, a certain feralness to it.

"Company? You mean.."

Roadhog smirked, glancing down to Junkrat. Junkrat simply let his eyes look at Roadhog for a second, before darting them back and away with a newly-set nervousness. What the hell was Roadhog doing?

"Good. You are smart." Roadhog muttered, finally letting up and letting go of Junkrat. Junkrat huffed, moving his wrists around before sitting himself up, Roadhog letting his legs go.

"...Roadhog, I can't possibly..."

Roadhog's dark eyes shot to hers, and she stopped talking, letting out a shaky sigh.

"I... I guess I can."

"Good. Come over here, please?"

Hearing the gentle ask from Mei was a change of pace, and hesitantly, she walked over, intertwining her fingers nervously. Junkrat scooted away on the bed, but Roadhog just pulled him over and away to sit down on the bed, Junkrat being moved to in Roadhog's lap. He spat a curse at Roadhog, looking back towards Mei. She was standing by the edge of the bed, feeling at her hands and wrists. Mei's face was still red as she shyly moved to sit on the bed, sitting in front of the other two on her knees. She held her knees shyly, hands feeling at the edge of her shirt.  
Roadhog looked down at the two, letting out a breath as he took one of Mei's hands, pulling her closer towards Junkrat. Junkrat scooted back visibly, looking at Mei with a mix of discontent and affection. She wasn't sure which.

Roadhog grew minorly frustrated at the two, moving a free hand back to shove Junkrat slightly forward. Mei squeaked, her hands coming up innocently as their lips were touched, by the force of the shove. Junkrat and Mei's eyes grew wide, and Roadhog let up a sigh as the two finally calmed into it, both closing their eyes and resigning to letting this go down.

Junkrat internally cursed at the pig as he kissed Mei, his hands coming up to her shoulders to pull her into a closer, more comfortable distance, his lower body being trapped by Roadhog's large hands. They held him down in his lap, crawling against his warming skin. Mei's hands came up to hold Junkrat's, Junkrat giving her a bite on the lip. It was all new to her, as Mei was never previously interested in anything romantic-- she has one, maybe two interests, but never ever acted upon them. And for a woman in her thirties, Mei started feeling a little guilty. She was the virgin here, and she was older than Junkrat was.  
She opened her mouth, letting Junkrat's tongue slip in, getting an odd taste in her mouth. It tasted like a weird mix between the cake batter she was tasting earlier, and the metallic, chemical-like taste she was getting from Junkrat. It made her want to gag, but at the same time, it was starting to dull down. When she pulled away for a breath, Junkrat let back a hiss, a little bit of saliva between their mouths. It made Mei feel even more embarrassed, shuddering as they parted.

She could hear a shuffling, and Roadhog started getting handsy with Junkrat, hearing his belt being undone. Mei assumed Junkrat heard it as well, because he glanced back with a more aroused look at Roadhog, who huffed out.

He looked back, Mei glancing to Roadhog before moving Junkrat's head over a little, peppering him with little kisses here and there. She could see the bite bruises Roadhog had left behind, one of them slightly bloodied. Yeesh. Did Junkrat really like it that rough? She moved to give them little pecks and kisses, small nips here and there that made Junkrat shudder and whimper to her touch. He was awfully sensitive, wasn't he? For as much as Mei could assume Junkrat and Roadhog felt at each other, he was squirmy one.  
Roadhog's hands came around to Junkrat's legs, delving into his pants; she could hear Junkrat gasp at the feeling, jittering a bit. She could hear shuffling under the pants. Was he...?  
When she heard Junkrat moan, setting his forehead on her shoulder, she got her answer. She glanced up at Roadhog shyly, who just gave her a lopsided grin and eye-gestured to Junkrat. Obviously, Roadhog wasn't too focused on getting himself off, rather he was just spoiling Junkrat, hoping Mei would join. She nodded, nudging Junkrat up off her shoulder to give him another kiss, moving to cross her legs and sit down, her hands cupping his pale face.

Junkrat melted into the kiss, his quiet moans and whimpers being drowned out by the kiss. His arms moved to hold onto her arms gently, pressing more into the kiss. Give or take a few seconds for Mei to respond, giving his lips little nips and tugs, finally dipping her tongue in. It was kind of fun, and she could see the appeal; Junkrat was a trembling, whimpering mess, all because of her and Roadhog. She felt an odd sense of pride.

She felt Roadhog slowly let go of Junkrat, hands slinking out of his pants to wipe them off on his own. He leaned over, starting to dig in the bedside table's drawer, looking for something. Roadhog pulled out a little red bottle with a rounded top, and Junkrat pulled away from Mei's kiss to look back with half-lidded eyes. At the sight of the bottle, he grew wide-eyed, looking at Roadhog.

"Love... I-I get what you're goin' for... but..." He glanced back at Mei quickly before his eyes looked back to Roadhog's, "...I-In front of her?"

Roadhog gave a shrug, and Mei looked the other over gently. His pants were falling off his ass, and he probably didn't notice. He had little blue undies on underneath, his boner peeking at the top of the band, wetting it. She grew red as well, her cheek tone matching Junkrat's at the idea of what they were going for. She got the idea, she did. But she was inexperienced. What if it wasn't good?  
Roadhog looked to Mei.

"More importantly... Are you okay with doin' stuff like this? With us?"

Mei hesitated, looking at him as she debated in her head. He was giving her the okay if she couldn't take it, if she wanted to leave. Something inside her, though, really wanted to get this over with. Like she was proving something to herself that she was adult enough to do this. Yes, she was the adult in the room! She could handle a little sexual activity.  
Though, when Roadhog slipped an arm around Junkrat and pulled him to sit up, Mei had to rethink for a second. She looked Junkrat over, her eyes gazing at him as she sat in silence, her eyes finally meeting Junkrat's. He bit his lip, shyly glancing away.

"Well?"

"It is fine." Mei replied quietly, moving to scoot forward, a hand on Junkrat's thigh. He twitched, glancing back at her. He looked so vulnerable-- nothing like what the news and articles made him out to be. He wasn't crazed right now, wasn't doing anything manic of the sort -- he was vulnerable, aroused, and shivering. It was oddly pleasing. Half of her had done this. Half of this was her accomplice. Roadhog breathed out in satisfaction to her answer, popping the little cork from the top of the bottle, and the smell of cinnamon entered the air. Mei never thought such a bakery-like scent could be so enticing. She moved Junkrat's jaw, making him look at her, as she continued what she had been doing before; she pressed her lips to his, a shudder coming from him as he wrapped his arms around her neck. Honestly, she would've never suspected Junkrat to be such a submissive type, especially to these sorts of things.

Roadhog poured some of the orange-colored liquid on his fingers, moving a hand under Junkrat to press a finger teasingly to his backside entrance. Junkrat moaned in reply, tightening his grip on Mei's neck. Mei supposed it was time for her to do... well, something, so she moved a free hand to tap Roadhog's tummy. The largest other looked down at the hand, hers gesturing at the bottle to put her palm up. Roadhog got the idea, tapping the bottle to her hand to signal it's whereabouts before he poured a little on her hand. She felt it warm almost immediately to her touch --- she wondered where he'd gotten it.  
Mei's other hand that wasn't lubricated tugged at Junkrat's briefs, Junkrat finally moving himself up a little to let her slip them down; she could feel it going over Roadhog's hand, realizing what the other was actually doing to Junkrat.

Mei, in her thirty so years of being alive, never thought she'd be in such a position.

She finally moved her free hand down, tracing circles as she held Junkrat's hips, moving her lubricated hand down. Mei felt around, idly trying to find her target before reaching the conclusion that she was near. Near and deadly.

Awkwardly, Mei moved her hand to grab Junkrat by the cock, Junkrat hitching and letting out a bit of a squeak to her touch. Her cold fingertips, mixed with the warmth of the lubricant and Roadhog teasing him open, made him shudder. Mei began to -- or she at least tried to-- stroke him up and down, moving her fingers to feel at the squishy, yet hard, thing in her hand. It was such an odd feeling --- she'd never encountered male genitalia in the flesh and blood before.

She finally got a grip, a rhythm going, and it wasn't very uppity from there. Nothing like the movies and stories said it would be like -- it was just her and Roadhog getting Junkrat off, Junkrat eventually gasping and moaning, a mess, in her kiss, her sticky hand feeling his cock finally twitch, Junkrat finishing and spilling on his chest with a moan. Roadhog pulled his hand away, gathering a tank top of his from the floor to pick it up, wiping his hand off, and handing it to Mei. She took her sticky hand away, wiping hers off, before she looked to Roadhog with a small bit of worry. He took it from her, starting to clean Junkrat up.  
Junkrat purred, glancing at Mei lazily and tired.

"'ou all 're so sweet... I feel spoiled." He muttered, and Mei smiled to give him a kiss on his jaw, on a bite mark. He purred, her hand feeling for his to hold it.

"Glad we could help." Mei replied, glancing up to Roadhog.

"Here-- Junkrat, Mei, you guys can sleep here if you want. I'll go take a look at that cake mixer."

Mei had almost forgotten about the cake mixer, her face turning red.

"Oh no! I forgot to turn it off!"


	6. Feelings Frozen Over

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So basically, there's going to be a lot of dialogue in this chapter, a paragraph here and there. It's not going to focus more on the plotless fluffy and smut, and more towards the plot, with their relationship being a big part of it. Hopefully I don't disappoint as much as I did with the awkward NSFW chapter, though I'm equally bad at writing action as I am smut. Half of this is unbeta-d, so please feel free to point out typos or awkward sentence structures!!

When Mei woke up, she wasn't as content as she had been the few days before; she remembered her previous night, shuddering at the idea that she'd actually done something of sexual nature. It was all alien to her, the idea of relationships, sexual endeavors. But the warmth behind her made it all worth while. Roadhog had fallen asleep in the bed, but Mei had decided to join Junkrat on his tattered bedroll on the floor. His arms were wrapped snugly around her waist, spooning her from behind. She could feel his nose nuzzled into her back of her hair, making it all messy. She had a hand under her pillow, giving herself some comfort from laying on the floor. They had ditched the blanket part long ago.

She hummed, shuffling to turn around and pat his face, making him stir and grumble, holding her closer. Mei huffed, giving a gentle shove. He grumbled again.

Fine.

Mei moved to make it look like she was going to give him a kiss on the cheek awake, but she sucked in a breath, and blew a bubble on his cheek. This successfully woke him up, Junkrat waking up with a laugh and playfully shoving her off. When the giggles died down, he yawned with a smile.

"A'right, a'right, you win, you c'n get up." Junkrat mumbled, rolling over with a dumb grin to go back to sleep. Mei huffed proudly as she got up, giving his side a pat.

"I'll come wake you both up later."

Mei found her hoodie that had been tossed to the ground at some point, slipping it on as she exited the room quietly, a hesitant gaze catching and watching the two before she fully closed the door. She looked towards the kitchen, which had been cleaned yesterday due to her fiasco with the poor cake mixer. They'd have to get a new one some day, but for now, she wasn't making any cake with that mixer any time soon. It made her sort of sad. She had made such a mess.

Mei walked into the kitchen, browsing the fridge before deciding on an apple, taking a bite of it as she tried to find something to make the other two. Her phone rang on the counter nearby, left on it's charger for the night. Mei shuffled over tiredly and answered, pulling the cord from it as she held the apple in her mouth.

"G'mornin', lovie! How ya feeling?"

It was Tracer's cheery voice, up at God awful hours of the morning. Mei pulled the apple from her mouth, holding her phone on a shoulder as she walked away to continue browsing.

"I am better, Roadhog managed to heal me. Though the scarring is permanent, I am afraid."

Tracer seemed to hum into the phone, pleased with Mei's answer. "That's good. I got Winston to fix my accelerator. Good as new!"

"Did he? That's good -- he is fine, I take it?"

"Good as you can get. Anyways, listen lovie, I got a job for ya."

"A job?" Mei questioned, chewing the bit of apple in her mouth before swallowing, putting her apple on the counter. It was Tracer, so she trusted her, but...

"Yup! So, Winston and I came to a bit of an agreement yesterday-- with Widowmaker attacking you and I, and with Talon attacking different cities and Winston's base, it's high time we brought Overwatch back together."

Mei gasped. "What?! We can't, Tracer, it was made illegal--"

"We know," Tracer said, halfheartedly, "But there's no other choice. Talon has to be stopped by _somebody_ , and we already have 76, Genji, and D.Va on our line's side again. And we've got some new recruits, too! And some oldies. But..."

"But?"

"I personally wanted you to join me on this next mission; I'm taking D.Va with me, and we are going to go track down the Widowmaker. Back in the action with me, y'know?" Tracer spoke, "I missed bein' beside you."

Mei blushed at the comment, glancing away at the bedroom door.

"But, Tracer, we are in France, nowhere near Gilbraltar -- and, what about Junkrat and Roadhog?"

Tracer's breath hitched, and she could hear the younger other mutter to herself.

"Why do you insist on protecting them? They're raging, international criminals, they're crazy, Mei. As much as I trusted them taking care of you, don't think I didn't have those two monitored-- I don't-"

"Well, I trust them." Mei replied, "And I can't just... I can't just abandon them. Roadhog _helped_ me, Tracer. And Junkrat's done more than enough to get me through things. You... just don't know them."

Tracer sighed.

"I'll see what I can do, lovie, but I need you on this mission with me. Besides, I have lil ol' Snowball over here, wanting to see his mummy again!"

Mei gasped. "Snowball?! Why do you have him?"

"He got almost destroyed when Widowmaker shot up the place-- I brought him back and Winston fixed him up good as new!"

"I... Oh, thank you, Lena, you don't know-"

"You're welcome, don't mention it, honey! Anyways, I'd prefer we get this thing done soon, though you're free to return to your safehouse anytime. Gilbraltar is looking forward to seeing such a pretty face again."

Mei chuckled, "I'll try my best to be there,"

"I can even forward you payment if you need airplane rides, dearie."

"That... will not be necessary, I think."

"Really? Where'd you get all the money?"

"A very, very loving pig, and a lucky little rat." Mei chuckled.

\---

When Junkrat woke up, it was a grumpy one. Not even Roadhog was up yet -- he supposed the big lug was sleeping in. Junkrat gathered himself, getting up, not bothering to put a shirt on like his roomies would've done. He went to leave the bedroom, but he heard Mei's cheerful voice from the kitchen, nearby, cheery and loving.

"Oh, and then I ended up breaking the poor cake machine! I made such a mess, Lena, it was crazy!"

She laughed. That laugh that sent shivers down Junkrat's spine as he smiled, leaning his head against the door. What the hell was he going to do? He loved this lady so much-- she was honestly the second best thing in his life, the first being Roadhog's company. Roadhog snored nearby, loud and deep, and Junkrat couldn't help but sigh happily. They were so nice, somebody like Junkrat didn't deserve two nice lovelies like them.

Junkrat left the bedroom, the door shutting behind him as he sighed, peeking towards the kitchen. Mei and Junkrat caught eyes -- dark ones meeting orange ones -- and she hesitantly looked away, to the phone.

"I have to go, Lena, but I'll call you back later, shi?"

A pause, and Mei shut the phone, putting it back on the counter to charge it. Junkrat simply watched in wonder, as Mei picked her apple core up and tossed it into the trash.

"Goodmorning, Jamie." She piped, "I was about to make you two breakfast."

"I... see that," Junkrat said, moving to lean against the counter. It was so weird -- without all the getup, Mei and Junkrat were so differently built, and definitely two different sizes. He was tall and skinny, she was short and chubby. Such a contrast.

"Who were ya talkin' to on the phone? Who's Lena?" Junkrat prodded.

"Tracer," Mei said, peering into the tiny cabinets above the stove, "She was inviting me back into Overwatch."

"Those omnic-lovin' hippies? You were a part a that?" Junkrat grunted, rolling his eyes, "Didn't do nothin' for the world that regular people couldn't already do."

Mei paused, slowly standing up straight to turn around, a small glare coming from her.

"'Omnic-loving hippies'? Jamie, they were what kept this planet together, away from Talon and all the war, gave people hope, peace-"

Junkrat crossed his arms, leaning back on the counter more. "Didn't fuckin' do that for us, just left us to fight against a bunch of robots and radiation. Doesn't quite fit the bill if it ain't everyone, eh?"

Mei huffed, a spurr of anger rising within her.

"No, but you all did not let in the omnics in, they only wanted places to stay from the world that hated them-- the war was not started by them."

"But it sure as hell was ended by them, blowin' up places, letting radiation seep out and destroy all the land! Roadie won't even talk about before, he's too afraid a rememberin' and feelin' upset about it! I don't even _know_ what before was like." Junkrat hissed at her.

Mei finally felt a bit inside of her blow, like one of Junkrat's bombs, her fists balling up.

"Because you all attacked them, you provided them with nothing but fear and retaliation!"

"We didn't _have_ to provide them with anythin'! They weren't ours to provide anythin' to!" Junkrat spat back, irritation and anger through his voice, "Who the fuck do you think they were?!"

"People, Jamison!" Mei hollared back, her face red, "Just like you and I, being attacked every single day for who they are, by people like you! And I'm going back to Overwatch to go and help them, help everyone, the world, and the climate, and hopefully get the world back into once peice!"

"Good fuckin' luck," Junkrat replied in an angry exhasperation, "Because the world's in enough peices as is! Heroes don't exist anymore, Mei--"

"They do to me, and obviously, you aren't one of them!"

Mei shoved passed him, grabbing her phone from the counter as she went to the door, pulling her shoes on. Junkrat stood up, growling.

"And where the hell are you goin'?! You ain't--"

Mei turned around. "I am not _what_ , Jamie?! What am I going to do? What _you_ don't want me to?!"

Junkrat's breath caught in his throat, and he wanted to yell at her so bad, _what the fuck was she doing, going back to Overwatch?_ They were the one thing, the one fucking thing Junkrat hated most, the only thing really, he-

"Ugh!" Mei huffed in frustration, "I'm leaving! I'll be back whenever."

Junkrat stayed silent, as Mei left, slamming the door behind her. He felt his face was red with anger, eyes stinging with threatening tears, and he growled, before letting out a bit of a frustrated holler, running his hands through his hair.

This action stirred Roadhog awake, who gathered himself and hurried to the bedroom door, opening it to look out. He had sweatpants but, that was really it, his hair still a mess and down to his shoulders, frayed and matted.

"What?! Why the fuck are you screaming!" Roadhog growled at Junkrat, who let out a choked noise.

"Mei!" Junkrat yelled, "She's leavin' us to go to fuckin' Overwatch, I should'a known she was too nice, what a ninny, fuckin' _whore_ , she's just--"

Roadhog growled deeply at the other spitting his insults, the rumbling erupting through the room and silencing the smaller Aussie, who grew more teary eyed. Roadhog stopped his growling to stare at Junkrat, harshly.

"She's just gonna up an' leave to go save the shitheads who destroyed our lives, just gonna leave us like this, gonna go save the world, I fuckin," Junkrat huffed, wiping his eyes so that he wouldn't let the tears fall, feeling Roadhog walking over to find his shoulder, holding it firmly as the other cries.

"I can't, Roadie, I really can't, she's gonna abandon us like everyone else, we're gonna be alone, we-"

"I told you Junkrat, there isn't anything we can do to stop her, if that's what she's going to do."

"But," Junkrat hiccuped, his voice becoming so grieviant and heavy, a hand covering his eyes in exhasperation, "I really, really liked her..."

"I know you do, Jamie... I do too."

Junkrat let out a huff, letting himself sit on the ground to let his emotions out. Roadhog simply sat down with him, waiting it out. Roadhog rubbed circles into Junkrat's back as the other cried into the mechanical hand, sputtering out his words and letting out what he could, his hands shaking and trembling with his body, in tune with his crying. Roadhog was used to this by now, Jamie's emotional distress coming out of the blue; it was best to just wait it out.

He thought of his options, thought of Jamie, thought of Mei. He didn't really hate her, no, he couldn't. But Overwatch was something Roadhog never blamed her for; what happened in Australia had never involved Mei, never involved Overwatch in the first place. It was both a blessing and a curse. But he didn't hate Overwatch like Junkrat did. Not by a long shot. And he definitely didn't hate Mei.

He couldn't.

\---

Mei felt her eyes being all teary, as she walked down the sidewalk, her phone in her shaking hands. How dare Junkrat insult Overwatch, as if it wasn't trying it's damnest to help him? So much of Mei's life was towards Overwatch, fixing the world and the climate in a planet filled with people who couldn't see they were destroying it. So much of her time and thought went towards bettering these things --- and despite Mei knowing that many people dissaproved, she would've never thought Junkrat would've sided with the rebel people. Hell, he might as well have worked for Talon, they were against Omnics almost as much as he was.

The phone picked up, and Tracer was on the other end.

"Hey, Dearie, why're ya--" She could hear Mei's sniffling, and she paused, "Mei, honey, what's wrong?"

"I'm in," Mei growled through the tears, "I'm joining you, and we'll take down Widowmaker _and_ Talon."

Tracer stayed silent on the other side, and Mei stopped walking. Listening in.

"But... weren't you wanting to bring Junkrat and Roadh-"

Mei's heart burned at the words, letting out a choked noise of distress.

"No, I'm leaving them here with the safehouse, I'm going with you. I want to be gone by tonight."

"Ain't that a bit drastic, I--?"

"Please."

"...I s'pose I can't say no." She said, finally piping up. Mei let out a shudder, wiping her face.

"Mei."

" _Shenmei_ , Tracer? What?" She snapped.

".... what happened, sweetheart?"

Mei let out a hiccup.

"It is yet another twisted set of events."

Tracer sucked in a breath.

\---

Roadhog wasn't going to let her get away that easy. He didn't want to, and he sure as hell wasn't going to let Mei just walk off like that. When Junkrat had finally calmed down, Roadhog got some food in the scrawnier other, making him take a bath to go let his nerves stop messing with him. When Junkrat had finished, he just ended up going back to sleep, curled up in one of Roadhog's shirts, hugging Mei's fluffy blue jacket to himself as well. He wouldn't have been able to take it away from Junkrat, anyway.

Roadhog took the free opportunity to find his spare cell, that he only used occasionally when he needed to contact someone. It was tiny, pink, and had little metal ears welded to the side, to make it both a weapon and cute. Like a piggy, the way Roadhog liked his accessories.

He managed to call Mei, though the call went through. She was busy.

He tried again after a few minutes. Busy once again. Roadhog grunted in frustration, sitting on the abandoned sofa to try one more time.

Ring, ring, ring. The dreaded noise, the one he tried to avoid when he could. Unsettling silence.

"...Mako, why-"

Roadhog didn't hesitate to start talking, his gruff voice skating on the line between upset and rather sad.

"What happened?"

"...What?"

"What happened that made you leave? Besides Junkrat being the emotional idiot he is."

  
"It is not that he is emotional, we do no agree on... a certain aspect of my life. I don't want to be around if that will be ridiculed, for the very thing that makes up my life."

"I don't care that you're a part of Overwatch."

"... Mako, what are you... What are you trying to do?"

"I want you to come home," Roadhog finally admitted, through a long pause of silence. "I just want you back here, I want Junkrat to stop crying, I want you to save the world, I want a whole lot of things. Doesn't mean it will work."

"I don't..."

"I know. I know you don't want to deal with him, and his opinion on the world, but.. I don't blame you for what happened in Australia. I don't blame the world like he does. And..." He let out a breath, "I sure as hell don't blame you for leaving."

"...Mako..."

"Just... whatever you are going to do, Mei, you're welcome in our arms anytime. Even if Jamie doesn't want to admit that."

There was another long silence. Roadhog could assume it was Mei contemplating what was going on, processing his words. They were more heartfelt than a lot of things he said, filled to the brim with emotion many didn't ever hear from Roadhog. And it sure as hell was tugging at his heart, his emotions filling his lungs the moment she had said his name, the moment they got to spend the quality time together. He'd never be able to forget her kisses, her voice, the way her breath always hitched in suprise.

He loved her, just like Jamie did, and if she wanted to leave, it wasn't his choice. It was hers.

That didn't mean it didn't hurt.

"I need to come collect my things..."

"When are you leaving?"

A heavy breath in. Roadhog knew it was coming, knew that this was happening. He knew that it wouldn't work in the long run. But something about those cheerful eyes, the loving smile, her peppy voice, made him want to forget that. Made him want to believe it was something that could be. He was familiar with the feeling arising in him. Heartbreak.

"I leave tomorrow."

Roadhog grunted, his face twisting into a deep frown, one he felt to his core; both Mako and Roadhog wanted to hurt somebody. Wanted to rip this feeling to bits and kill it, forever and ever. But he was an adult, and kept his cool.

"...I will get your things together and make sure you have them."

".. Thank you. I.."

"Anytime."

"Hey?"

"Hm?"

"Goodnight, Mako."

"...Goodnight... Mei."

"Sweet dreams."

He couldn't manage a reply as he heard the phone be hung up, the call dropping to that silence, the one that choked at him and held him, digging it's dark claws into his very soul, pulling at every bit of him it could.

He wouldn't ever forget that kiss, the way she said his name, the way she smiled at him when she would joke. The way she almost cried when she broke the cake machine, the way she always asked for consent with those pretty eyes of hers, the way she got passionate when she discussed things she enjoyed.

Roadhog let out a held breath as he picked himself up, carrying himself to the bedroom, scooting Jamie over. He was sleeping, soundly, his face buried in her hoodie. Roadhog laid beside him, the bed creaking loudly in reply to his weight being sat on it. He wrapped a firm arm around Junkrat, holding him close and letting out a sigh.

He didn't hate Overwatch like Junkrat did. And he definitely didn't hate Mei.

He couldn't.


	7. Empty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Perhaps it was the empty home. Perhaps it was her empty heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure my chronology is correct but eh fuck it, im also running out of ice / cold puns please he lp. Lots of sad Mei in this, sorry it took so long (have been struggling w/ depression and family visits this week, so it was kinda a challenge to get this out)

Mei had to return at some point. She didn't want to, no, but she had to. The tiny house was silent when she returned, slowly walking in. She closed the door hesitantly behind herself, looking to the door of the guest bedroom. It was the one her, Roadhog, and Junkrat stayed together in the past two nights; that wasn't counting this one, as she pulled her eyes away to go towards the bedroom she'd woken up in the first day she'd been there. That lonely bedroom, those familiar, cold blue sheets. Not warmed by the other two.

She shook that idea away. No, Junkrat completely opposed what she wanted to do. She couldn't stay with that, she couldn't support someone who hated Omnics as much as the rebels did. The dark room greeted her with open arms, the chocolatey walls seeming to match the tone of how she felt. Cold, and rather alone. The lonely box fan sat upon the side table, not turned on, simply idle. Waiting for someone to turn it on, give it the energy it needed to start up. Mei didn't turn it on, though. She shut the door behind herself, made her way to the bed, sitting down. She took her boots off, letting them sit beside each other to keep company. She laid down on the bed, scooting under those blue covers. They were cold to her touch, but the basic hoodie she was wearing could keep her plenty warm.

Mei laid there for a long time, in her thoughts.

What Junkrat said, some of that wasn't exactly wrong. Overwatch avoided Australia for a real long time, knowing the two factions of people had gotten a little more hostile since Omnics began going to Australia. That a majority of Australian's didn't even want Omnics there in the first place, even though they only were seeking refuge. That the nuclear materials had not been destroyed by Australians, but had been destroyed by the Omnics themselves, destroying the lands in a final act of fear.

She could've been there; she was definitely alive when the Crisis happened. She was just a young woman then, but she could've.

It was no excuse though. Winston had already informed her when she joined, There is no way to save every single person. That she couldn't possibly blame herself for the death of every person, as she was trying her best in the harsh world. That many dead can lead to the freedom of a million others, and those that did die were heroes.

Heroes. The word felt unfamiliar to her, like it was a million miles away. An unreachable target, that she couldn't wrap her fingers around, no matter how hard she reached. All those dead people, broken Omnics, heroes, for doing what? Losing their lives? They could've been so much more. She'd seen heroes, and a lot of them weren't around anymore. She remembered Commander Morrison. She remembered Reyes, she remembered Genji, remembered a lot of the old Overwatch's main people. They were the spotlighted heroes, of course, unlike Mei. She had been in the back lines, working on climate control, working on saving people from the threat many refused to even aknowledge existed. She remembered the ripple the world went through, hearing the death of Commander Morrison, hearing about Overwatch falling apart.

She remembered the heartbreak she felt, her teary eyes were staring at the screen, inside their arctic haven. All of the staff were nearly crying, out of jobs, out of time. That was nearly an hour before everything went to Hell, when the panick set in.

When Mei watched all her friends get frozen in their cryopods, the only companion in her reach being Snowball, as they watched inside pods; their entire future destroyed, but all they had to do was wait for help. Help that never came, never would. The hope that died out with each person who never woke up, the hope of Heroes that wouldn't come to save them, the moment they fell asleep.

As Mei drifted off into slumber herself, she could feel that hope swell inside her, burning at her heart.

No hero would come to save her the moment she fell asleep.

\---

When she woke up, the home appeared void of any other presence besides herself. The loneliness setting inside the vacant building, her bags on the sofa, filled to the brim. She felt at her hair, the strands spindling down between her fingers and curling around her shoulders, as she walked towards that desperate door. The thing holding her between her wants and her needs, her head broken and confused on what to do. Her heart sunk the moment she opened the door.

Vacant, as she'd feared. No signs the two she'd been with were even there, even after everything they had done. Nothing. No snore coming from Mako's booming, toxic lungs. No mumbling from Junkrat, no shuffling of fabric. No human warmth that came from when she was with them.

The cold, bitter truth felt at Mei, gripping her tight, icy fingers stabbing and pouring into her soul. She watched the room momentarily, before pulling herself away, shutting the door. Her insides felt like they were heavy, her head feeling like it was filled with sludge and sloom. As if every step she took would cause her to sink farther and farther. Mei gathered her belongings, eventually finding herself wanting a bath.

She ended up doing so, finding her heavy body actually just turning the shower knobs on, her hands seeming slow and shaky. Mei wasn't even sure why at this point, but by now, she could care less about the specifics. She had to get over it, gather herself together. She wouldn't be useful to Overwatch if she was feeling so down in the dumps. But when she shed her clothes and entered the shower, the steam clouding to the top of the room, her body hid behind the curtain... She felt no much better. Just less cold and hard, more like mushy. Like she could be sloshed around like nothing. Mei hated it.

She hated feeling this way, so vulnerable and hurt. But she wasn't even sure where it was coming from. It was so deep inside her, it was frustrating her beyond belief, and yet, all she could do was run autopilot during her whole shower, not sure where limbs were or landing. Her entire body felt alien.

Was it her past catching up to her? God, she hoped not. This hadn't even been triggered by anything, nothing was upsetting or stressful, she wasn't doing anything even remotely similiar to back then.

Perhaps it was the empty home. Perhaps it was her empty heart.

Mei couldn't put a finger on it, she only turned the water off, the familiar scent of those feminine soaps filling the room. It didn't do anything for her, as she stepped out of the shower onto the fluffy blue mat, her hand searching for her glasses to set on her face. When she had proper vision, she dried herself off with a free towel and got back into her hero clothes. France was no temperature to wear them, but she could make it. Especially because it was nowhere near winter, and nowhere near snow. Gibraltar might have a change in this, but she had no way of telling; not after being so out of touch with reality.

It really was a struggle for Mei to leave that bathroom. The moment her eyes locked with a nearby mirror was the moment she started to feel extremely alien, moreso than before. She didn't even look like how she felt: she was so good at hiding that type of thing that her body in the mirror looked so normal, so awake and fine, but inside she felt like the essence of a drowning slug. That her insides were like crude oil, slowly dripping down to the insides of her feet and hold her there, and yet those blue eyes that stared back were still the ones who cried excitedly when she'd gotten her job as a climatologist, those same eyes that smiled in every photo.

Those same eyes that wished they could see something else.

She hissed to herself, peeling her eyes away from that view to leave that bathroom, the rest of the house being nice and cold compared to that steamy bathroom. She needed to get her things together, finish up... But, wait, her things were all piled on the sofa, right? She needed to repack, then, find something to do idly before Tracer would come get her, before she'd be taken away from his darkness that kept holding her. She wished it was something, someone, else holding her besides that rugged, sludgy feeling that didn't want to go away today. Mei made herself some food, drank some coffee, did everything she could, besides packing. And when that was done, she unpacked, repacked her bag, twice over, even making a list of everything she owned. It was like she was on a constant autonomous movement, but she wasn't controlling any of it. She had the freedom to, but her mind made her feel a billion centuries away. Maybe she was still that woman trapped in ice.

Perhaps it was the empty home. Perhaps it was her empty heart.

\---

The sloom did not go away when she got that call. It simply worsened, when she heard that peppy voice. And yet, her voice came out fine, cheery and peppy and glad to hear Tracer. What the hell was she doing? She obviously wasn't fine, and Mei was unsure how she was able to see herself doing such a task, her heavy body somehow setting that bag on her shoulders. Her body working seperately from her mind as she took her mittens off, shoving them into her pocket, shoving them away from sight. The way she jingled those keys she'd borrowed from Tracer, her fingers diligently picking the right one and moving away from the door, to lock it; feeling them relacing her boots so they wouldn't fall off when she ran, adjusting her hair pin, everything. Her eyes moving to take her scenery in before she abandoned it once again, the empty house being a waiting spot for whenever she'd return. Feeling her feet moving heavily as she made her way to a bus stop, the way her mind didn't even register her being on that bus after a while.

The only thing that made her re calibrate her entire mode, was that she heard her stop being called. She was using the buses to get to Rennes, where she and Tracer would be taken by 76 back to Vannes, and then flown out to the ruins of Gibraltar... By Spain. Away from anything she ever could've had in France. It made Mei's stomach lurch, her entire body shuddering. Abandoning her life once again to try and make it better.

She suddenly felt worried. Where had Junkrat and Roadhog even gone? There was no way they'd be able to survive here, in such a packed area. They'd only managed in more rural, less populated areas. They'd be arrested almost immediately. But, if what Tracer said was put into perspective, they really were just insane criminals. No different than those that tried to bomb and destroy Overwatch, no better than the person who had assassinated Tehkhartha Mondatta, no better than any other criminal they'd arrested. Yet, that seemed to not be a factor when Mei really looked at them; the way they'd snuggle up to her, the kind way they'd speak, the way Mako took his mask off to look at her. The look of trust when they did anything together. That didn't scream criminal, that didn't scream anything except love and trust. Something Mei had probably forgotten about, tangled up in her climatology mess.

She heard her stop again, after she'd gotten on the third bus. She left the bus, leaving by a small tip of money for the driver, as she stood in unfamiliar territory, her body feeling numb.

She'd gotten to remember what it felt like to be alive, while she was on the run with two criminals, and she wished she could still feel it. That burning anxiety as she was on that bike, holding onto the obviously too tall Australian in her lap, his poor legs pulled up to his chest as he watched the road with casual orange eyes. That nervous, yet excited feeling when she'd actually gone out of her comfort zone for them. That feeling when Junkrat and her had gotten into a fight, that small feeling inside her of want that she hadn't known even existed. Mei was in over her head, and those two weren't even around anymore.

That brought her mood down again. Those orange eyes would never see her again, that pointy little nose would never be nuzzled in her hair again whenever she'd wake up. She wouldn't hear those big snores coming from Roadhog, wouldn't feel that large hand holding her like something precious. Wouldn't ever hear that voice again, wouldn't get to hear Junkrat's snickers, wouldn't ever hear his curiosity when she brought back something he'd never seen.

She had to hold her feelings in as she numbed, walking to where the meeting point was. She felt tired. She felt sick. She felt... awful. All of her attempts to thwart it had been in vain. She could even feel it like a health problem, like... Like perhaps her heart really had broken in two. Over two junkers from Australia doing exactly the opposite of what her job called for. It stung to think about.

Mei hated it. She even hated it when her body and mind seemed to merge back, her ears hearing that familiar tweet of Tracer's voice, as she was suddenly face to face with the brit, her body being contorted into a really tight hug that made her squeek. Tracer let go and laughed.

"Welcome, back, Lovie- I missed you!" She said, giving Mei a kiss on the cheek. "I hope things are okay now, you sounded so upset. We couldn't immediately get us one of the old planes, so I settled to bring ol' 76 with us in his truck. Look at it! She's so big!"

Tracer had a disbelieving look as she pointed to the parking lot they were by. It was obvious which was 76's, because it was blue pick up truck larger than any of the others, the truck still floating above. It was so fitting for him, too; it had enough seats for god knew how many, and it was so long and intimidating. But the blue tone made it less intimidating, more fatherly. She smiled fondly. She had a feeling she'd like 76. Reminded her of how Commander Morrison was.

Tracer led her in, one of the back doors opening and a familiar Korean saying. Mei paused, watching as her new friend came spinning around and crashing into her, arms around her neck. Mei ended up laughing to this, holding the younger girl in her arms as she hugged back. It was Hana, her normal bunny suit on and her headset off in the truck, her hair in a ponytail. She was so small, Mei had almost forgotten the size difference between their body proportions, even if she'd only seen Hana on posters. She might be shorter, but Hana was so light.

"Mei! You've been gone for so long, I was so worried, aigo!" Hana said, hugging her tightly, "I hope you are feeling better since what Tracer told me! It's so nice to meet you finally!"

Mei didn't reply, just laughed nervously as she let Hana down. The two conversed for a bit, Tracer hopping around happily and laughing to their jokes. Mei didn't have his previous luxury when she was stationed for climatology, so actually getting to know Hana and Tracer better was a blessing. She could hear the other truck door opening and slamming. Oh boy.

"Lena, I know you're excited and all, but I don't have a lotta gas in this thing, you-"

She could hear that tired voice, from behind a mask that blocked some of the sound. Tracer moved away to reply, the two arguing quietly and not so seriously before a chirp, a struggled grunt, and the truck door clicking again.

"Sorry, Soldier, it'll just be another moment!" Tracer said, as she returned to the two other girls, "76 is getting a little agitated that we're taking so long. We'd better hurry out."

Mei nodded. Hana and Tracer grabbed at Mei's bags and helped them into the back compartment of the truck, Mei avoiding saying much to 76. He sounded tired. Must've been driving all night to get there. Mei felt sorry for him, having to deal with three overemotional women for almost an hour before they'd get on that Overwatch plane. Especially because they didn't have one at the start of the trip, and if Mei was calculating correctly, it'd be 16 hours of nothing but Tracer and Hana talking. Even Mei wouldn't wish that on her greatest enemy.

When their conversation was over, the three of them packed into the back of the truck, 76 being completely silent whilst they drove from the area. Tracer and Hana continued their chatter, the talking becoming white noise to her.

Mei couldn't help but feel her body growing heavier the farther away they drove, her eyes watching the road.

\---

They stayed in that truck, for a good while. Mei could've taken a bus, if she'd really been so detatched, but she did entertain the other girls' ideas when they wanted her to be with them. She liked Hana and Tracer, that much was obvious. But Mei's head and body were at war with each other, along with her dreams and her reality. She felt rather awful, and in reply to this feeling, she remained silent, much like 76, the whole time they had been riding. She could tell it brought 76 quite a comfort when the other two eventually drifted their talking off, going back to Hana playing her little handheld gaming system, some game with monsters in it. The small beeps and boops, along with 76's gentle curse every once in a while due to traffic, was all that they heard.

They had to wait, even when they got to their destination. Apparently there had been a miscommunication, and they were backed a good half an hour. Most of it, spent with gentle mutters, some small talk here and there, more silence. Though she did get 76 to talk a little, and that much out of him made Mei appreciate him just a little more. Few words, but she enjoyed them nonetheless. She was sure there'd be a lot more to him when they got back to the old HQ.

Though, when she heard the familiar revving of a chopper, that bike, not a plane, Mei's heart sunk. She could hear it. It was so close to her heart.

It couldn't be, but it had to be. Her head was messing with her, surely, as it couldn't be... The same chopper that had left her a few days ago. But her body betrayed her mind, and her almost blank feeling was watching from afar as her hand moved to open the door, Lena and Hana confused as they watched her do so.

She dropped from that truck, looking out. She walked away, the rest of the crew in the truck becoming mildly worried as they watched her walk away; Mei's eyes scanned the area, before her eyes fell upon just what she'd believed her head had created. But it hadn't, and she had been wrong, and she felt her heart sting at the sight.

That familiar stumble, the click of a peg leg, and the chopper turning off. It was definitely Junkrat falling out of that smiley faced sidecar, and it was definitely Roadhog who was sitting on that chopper, looking at her from behind that mask. And it was definitely Junkrat who was running towards her, nearly stumbling on himself, and then nearly stumbling on the edge of the sidewalk with that peg leg.

And it was definitely Junkrat who was suddenly right there, with her, hugging her tightly and almost falling over from the height difference, saying something out loud in his thick Australian accent that Mei was too overwhelmed to actually hear. Lena poked her head out of the truck, surprise and confusion on her face at the sight.

And it was definitely Mei who started crying, definitely her that was hugging him back in a relief, her body somehow not feeling so heavy and cold anymore.


	8. Home is Where the Heart is

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MORE JUNKRAT! FEELSY MEI! LUCIO! :D

Mei hadn't felt so uplifted in a hellishly long time. They'd come back, they'd followed her destination all the way back to joining Overwatch, and her favorite part, was the suprised she'd gotten while in disbelief. Roadhog had gotten off his bike, watching the truck with a harsh glare as he made his way over to hug the other two, almost protectively, as Tracer's expression dropped from confusion to a rather unsatisfied frown. Mei pulled away eventually, looking up to the two, words not being able to make their escape from her thoughts. It was a real struggle to even gather her train of thought together, and she swallowed. The two revealed that Roadhog had managed to convince Junkrat that they could join Overwatch, and get to blow up things for a living much safer than they would being on the run; Tha, and they'd be with Mei a lot longer if they decided to join. He'd gotten Jamie on board, and followed Mei that few extra days, as she had passed their own safehouse of the night.

Mei couldn't have been more delighted. But inside that truck, there was at least one person who didn't like that idea... Not one bit. Tracer had hissed and soured her mood at the idea, but masked it with continuing to help Hana try and catch more pocket monsters, ignoring the fact that 76 was allowing them (under close guard) to join them in their flight back to Gibraltar.

\---

It'd taken a lot of convincing, but they managed to load the truck and Roadhog's chopper safely together, where the two vehicles would arrive at Gibraltar safely and securely. Roadhog needed a bit of talking, but it was agreed upon, as him and 76 seemed to share a rather deep connection to their vehicles. The others assumed it was just an older guy thing, as not even Junkrat understood why they liked their vehicles that much. Perhaps it was just because they'd both had them for a really long time, or maybe they both liked automotive stuff. Who knew.

Mei was most happy, however, when they entered that aircraft, and Mei was met with a tiny little robot: Snowball, who was fixed up and perfectly fine, rubbing against her face and beeping around her cheerily. Mei felt like she could explode right there with happiness, Junkrat and Roadhog behind her and absolutely astonished at the niceness of the ship. Though it was almost immediately erased, as Junkrat stumbled away to play with the basketball hoops that were there.

Once Mei had finished her re-welcomings, and the ship was off, the room grew quiet again besides a few things. Hana playing on her gaming system some more. 76 watching the television that was inside, the news playing at a constant. Junkrat teasing Tracer with his height, being able to shove the basketball directly into the hoop with no problem, and in reply, Tracer struggling to jump and dunk in a single basketball. Eventually, she gave up, and the two began pelting each other with said basketballs. This activity was quickly pulled to a halt, however, when one of the balls richocheyed off to the side, hitting 76 directly in his visor.

Though, among that dark feeling and the glare 76 gave the two, Hana's laugh seemed to pierce through all of it like an arrow, that bright laugh that lit up the room and made the others smile, finding the comedy in the entire situation. 76 let up a sigh as he looked back to that television, sitting in the chair he always sat in comfortably, his temper calmed by Hana's silliness. Others weren't so easily calmed by this. When the basketballs were flying again, one bounced off the ground and was threatening to bounce right up to Roadhog, but that large hand came up and caught it before it did. Roadhog looked at the basketball, clenching his hand and causing the ball to pop a hole, squeezing the air and life from it before he tossed it on a pool table nearby, the flat and empty carcass of the toy laying on the green fabric. Junkrat and Tracer paused, before the ceased toying with them to sit down, far away from each other. Tracer liked to sit by 76, and Junkrat retreating to Roadhog's side, their mutual distrust and disliking arising once again, creating a wall thicker than any of Mei's ice walls.

The silence loomed over once again, some small chatter here and there, but things were mostly quiet. Tracer would occasionally watch the news with 76, talking to him about what was going on, talking of plans and whatnot that she knew very well Winston would lecture about later. Roadhog stayed silent, eventually picking up a magazine that was nearby to read. Junkrat would incessantly ask about what it was about, getting twitchy and jittery due to the overwhelming silence and calmness. Eventually, Roadhog just let the other settle on his side, Junkrat falling asleep against him quietly. Mei kept with Hana, watching her catch another one of her Pocket Monsters and naming it after Snowball, who beeped happily.

It stayed this way, almost the entire way, until the ship started to lower, Athena warning those inside that the aircraft was lowering and was about to land. Mei couldn't help but look to Roadhog, her eyes gazing at him momentarily, before she could swear those chocolate eyes were glancing back at her from the side. Her heart jumped, Mei pulling her eyes away to pat at Snowball and look at the new pocket monster Hana had caught. Roadhog let out an audible sigh.

Obviously, things wouldn't be so simple from here on out. That was evident to Roadhog, as when their aircraft dropped and they were allowed out, Tracer rushed Mei out, Mei only glancing back momentarily as she was taken. He himself woke Junkrat, allowing 76 to be the one leading them out, as Hana was left to idly put basketballs away and then probably dissapear to do her own thing.

Roadhog would be lying if he said he wasn't jealous of her freedom.

\---

It was more than Mei could've ever asked for. Meeting such a wonderful crew, older than the Overwatch photos but just as loving and open-armed as they had been years ago. She met Mercy, who was wonderful and bright as she'd heard of, her laugh bringing a sunlight she didn't know existed. Then she met Genji, who was polite and kind to her, even going so far as to give his so-called 'salute' to her (she didn't understand the gesture, but it was cute anyway), before his teacher, Zenyatta, gave her a kind welcoming and a handshake. 76 was off leading Roadhog and Junkrat around, probably lecturing them. She then met Torbjorn, who happily informed her that he was, in fact, the one who had fixed Snowball. She gave a thanks, and the shorter man seemed to glow at the praise, giving a thick laugh.

The world shook underneath her as she met Reinhardt, being drawn up into a hug that almost broke her in two, as she laughed and gave her hellos. They were such a nice... family, almost.

She noticed there were some people from pictures that weren't around... And though she could assume many were off in their own quarters and areas, she knew deep down where many of them had probably ended up. Many of them that had probably left them long ago...

Mei shook the thought away as Mercy took her hand and began to speak to her, moving them away to a more private area as she chattered about the new Overwatch, how glad they were to see her, and how much fun she'd have helping them out. They spoke of Tracer, spoke of Overwatch, of everything, as Mercy led her to a quarters room that would be called hers. It even had a connection to another room she could make into a center for her climatology studies.

"Ah! And, Mei," Mercy spoke calmly, her hand still holding Mei's, mother-like in every gesture, "One last thing."

"Yes?"

"About your, mh.. friends," Mercy said, as she began to let go of Mei's hand, "We got the word from 76 that they wanted to join. I allowed Winston to run background checks on the both of them... You are aware that-"

"They're both criminals and murderers, yes. I am fully aware," Mei replied, her voice dropping to be quieter, her eyes watching the empty living space.

"That wasn't what I was going to say."

Mei looked back at Mercy.

"We welcome anyone to Overwatch who would like to use their skills for good. We may not have an agreeing opinion, but from what I have seen, those two work very well together in what they put their mind to... And though I do not agree with their... previous missions, I am hopeful that their future ones can be done for the peace in humanity."

Mei's eyes lit up, "... Wait, do you mean that?"

"Yes. I did, and I spoke to Roadhog before he found you and the others in Vannes. He seemed like he was... more down to Earth than I'd once mentioned. Though, Junkrat may need some more convincing before we get him on the field," Mercy spoke calmly, meeting Mei's eyes, "I'd like for you to talk to him. I'm sending you on a mission very early on with Tracer and Hana. If you come back in one piece, he will be settled in by then with all the checkers and such that they aren't familiar with. If you could... perhaps talk to him about this whole ordeal, I believe he'd be much more content on staying."

Mei lifted an eyebrow. "You want me to convince him to stay here? What makes you think he will listen to me?"

Mercy smiled. "I got quite the expository from Roadhog all about that. I'm positive Junkrat will listen to you. Now, get settled in, we can air and find anything you may want or need in your living space; There's a screen beside the door inside that you can use to talk to Athena, and can use it to call anyone here from anywhere. Please do contact me if you need anything further, ja?"

Mei nodded. "Thank you, Doctor Ziegler."

"You can call me Mercy," She stated as she patted Mei's head, her boots clicking on the ground as she left the room. Mei sat her bags down.

So, her mission after the legitimate one, was to speak to Junkrat. She knew that part well enough, she supposed, but.. After that night in France, she didn't know how things would go down. Uncertainty pulled at her tummy and mood, as she began to unpack her bag, folding clothes to either hang or put in her dresser, Snowball sleeping on a table near the door.

The room was nice, but it wasn't extravagent like the travel ship's, either. Blank, dark metal walls, a small blue bed. Her dresser by the door was dark brown, along with the table with the mirror above it, her closet door was some assortment of steel. No decorations, no special things. A door behind it all to lead to the Science Labs. She definitely would need to remodel this room to her liking. But for now, she was content with her settling. She kicked her boots off, taking her jacket off and folding it to put it beside her bed, finally pulling her hair from the bun. She folded her glasses and set them besides Snowball, letting out a sigh as she laid down.

She hummed as she got under those covers (that were actually softer than she'd expected), sleep grasping at her quickly and sending her into a soft bliss, more rest than she'd gotten in days.

\---

She woke up to a cheer voice at her door, Lúcio being the one to greet her. He was kind enough to wait for her to wake up on her own accord, letting her know dinner was going to be soon and Mercy wanted her to join them. Mei sat herself up, her hair having fallen to her shoulders and out of her bun, her glasses on her dresser by Snowball, who was still in sleep mode. She stood, fixed herself and gained her glasses, before stepping out. Mei was greeted to a boy almost her height, but just a little taller, with dreads up in a ponytail and dangling.

It was Lúcio, the musician she'd heard a lot about recently. He had joined Overwatch rather late on, after something happened in his hometown. That was about all she knew. But he was kind and bubbly, so far, leading her to the dining hall to join everyone with dinner. He ended up being seated next to Hana. She could swear she could see them holding hands under the table.

She took a seat beside two empty chairs; the table was rather long, everyone just kind of gathered and chit chattering. There were alcohol bottles on the table -- Mei wasn't expecting that. It was... orderly. Like a family would be. Mercy pouring white wine for herself, everyone with a choice of thier own poison (except for Hana, who was too young to drink). She got a pretty ideal view of who was there -- Reinhardt, Torbjorn, and 76 all sat together, right besides Mercy. Torbjorn had a couch cushion on his chair, and it made Mei smile. She could see Genji, Zenyatta. Acrossed from them were who she could assume was Genji's so-called brother, Hanzo. McCree she recognized from those personal pictures in older newspapers, but he seemed a bit scruffier than before. He seemed to be too busy gazing at Hanzo. Winston and Tracer sitting beside each other, Tracer chirping at the gorilla's side. He had such a big personal chair! And then there was Lúcio, Hana, the two chairs besides Mei, and herself. She could assume who'd be sitting there beside her.

Under the yellow-lit table, Mercy stood to walk over to Mei and greet her, giving her a hug as the other stayed seated.

"Good evenin', Mei!" She chirped, "I heard you were taking a nap. I hope it was nice, would you like a drink?"

Mei shook her head and smiled at the other.

"We are waiting for your two friends to join us, but I hear they're more comfortable staying in thier own rooms for now. Perhaps you can bring them some food when you're done?" Mercy suggested.

"Ah, yeah, I can." Mei agreed, realizing everyone was slowly quieting and glancing to her, most of them smiling. Give or take Torbjorn and Hanzo weren't really smiling, but she could assume that was the closest she'd get. Her face felt warm, growing in color as she smiled and waved shyly, "Ni hao."

"Everyone, this is our new recruit, Mei Ling. You may have heard of her as being one of the old head environmentalists," Mercy introduced, "She is our newest member, I hope you give her a loving familiar welcome!"

There were different hellos coming from all directions; some cheery, some loving, some less than enthusiastic, some in languages she didn't understand. But it was generally a positive outlook, and she smiled sheepishly.

Dinner went swell, in Mei's regards. Everyone was rather open and kind to each other. Passing food around was super easy, and she almost felt like she was back at the old environmental wards in the Arctic, where everyone was treated as family like they'd been together since birth. And people were so willing to talk to her, she didn't feel unwelcomed at all, her sadness seeming to melt away at the interactions. Though she felt a little anxious, she all around enjoyed the experience. She gathered up plates for the other two, humming and saying her goodbyes and goodnights as she left dinner, her thoughts returning to her slowly.

Mercy gave her directions to the rooms Junkrat and Roadhog were staying in. She could assume they'd ignore such and stay in the same room, anyway. When she found Junkrat's absolutely empty and unlocked, she resorted to going to Roadhog's, having to knock.

"Heyo, it's me, don't worry; I brought you guys dinner." She said to the door. There was some shuffling.

"Junkrat's sleeping, be careful," Came that familiar, deep and gravely voice, "Door's unlocked."

Mei hummed, opening the door with a careful hand, the two plates balanced on her other arm. When it was open, she transferred a plate to her free hand, moving the door open with a shoulder. She closed it behind her with her foot, looking around the room. It was blank, much like hers, a set up almost identical: with the exception, of course, that they didn't have access to the labs. There was a bookshelf though, and it looked like Roadhog had already gotten ahold of it.

There was a small table nearby. She set the plates down on it, looking to the bed. Roadhog sat on the floor, his head set on the edge of the bed as he closed the book in his hands. Junkrat was curled up on the bed, under the comforter, his smoke-tinged, blond hair poking out from it. The room smelled nice and clean --- the two must've bathed.

She smiled at Roadhog a little, looking at him. He had his mask off, set beside himself, with his hair still up in that cute and tiny ponytail. His armor on the floor, all laid out and organized. He definitely took a shower.

Those chocolatey eyes looked up to hers.

"Hey."

"Hi," Mei spoke, "You holding up alright?"

"As good as I can be, considering I just joined Overwatch."

"It's not that bad."

"Yea, but I think its more tolerable with you around."

Mei couldn't help but grin, moving to sit down in front of the other.

"How's Jamie holding up?"

"Fine... But he missed you, even if we were only seperated for a day or so."

Mei chuckled.

"Yeah... I missed him, too. Missed both of you."

It was now Roadhog's turn to smile, and Mei reached out a hand. He set his hand to her's and held it gently.

"Heard you're going to a mission tomorrow."

"Mhm. I promised to talk to Junkrat after I get back."

"And if you don't come back?"

"Then I guess I'll meet you guys in the afterlife," Mei joked, squeezing his hand, "I'll be fine."

"I hope so. You'd better talk to me, too. I missed you almost as much as he did. Promise?"

Mei smiled. She definitely missed this.

"Yea. Promise. Now eat your dinner, before I eat it for you."


	9. Blue Blood, Red Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I finally got Mei to do her first mission! I apologize that this took so long to write, I've had school and lots of stress, but I did it! Most of you can assume that the hooded woman is a recent added character, and there is NO Junkrat or Roadhog action in this chapter, sadly. But Mei gets her time, and bonds with some new friends. Hope you enjoy <3

She felt cold, both inside and out, the whole trip. The sun had fallen hours ago when they’d arrived -- the purple and blue sky was what greeted them, and before long, it had turned into the black void littered with white stars.

 

They all chose their methods of travel --- most by La Línea. There was some reported Talon activity, and they had linked to be close to the Widowmaker, who was most likely directing the attention. It was a small town -- nothing too big, but it was pretty nonetheless. Considered the “Neutral Zone” between Spain and the areas of Gibraltar, Mei wished that Talon would get their nose out of the town. But, hey, that was their job: to run Talon out of the town full of easy-going omnics and people who didn’t mind living side by side.

 

Mei had found common grounds with Hanzo, the Japanese archer whom hadn’t smiled at her the first time they’d met. She could assume smiling wasn’t really his thing, as the whole time they traveled together, he didn’t smile a single time; the only exception was the small crack of a smile she’d gotten when she’d asked about McCree. He seemed to be infatuated with the very idea of the man being around.

 

They talked, chatted, about cultures and history and things they knew about each other. Mei mentioned old stories of _Nian_ monsters, _Meng Jiangnv_ ; in return, Hanzo told her stories he’d heard from his childhood, along with the story of _Susanoo_ and _Yamata no Orochi._ The both of them seemed to find solace in sharing these stories, and though Mei had yet to see Hanzo fully smile, she could tell by his tone that speaking to someone who understood a similar culture was nice.

 

She did find her final comfort when he told her the word for friend -- _tomodachi,_ was it? The idea of making a friend made her heart soar.

 

The fun was short lived, however, as the moment they had all reached their rendezvous point, Hanzo had dropped as silent and harsh as he had been beforehand. Hana kept her mech out of sight for now, waiting for an opportune time to activate it and pull it from it’s hiding spot so they could fight. Tracer glowed in the dark-- her chronal accelerator had a hue of blue that went across all of them, their skin and outfits covered with the dim spread of the light. She found an odd appeal to it.

 

Tracer went over their plan, quiet as they could at their point, as they all moved to hiding behind a nearby alleyway. Hanzo would go deeper into territory, spy for a few moments to scan and eliminate any wandering Talon members. Once that was completed, Tracer was meant to infiltrate the area and search for any signs of the Widowmaker, or a secondhand mission of finding out any intel from Talon. Lastly, Mei could enter with Hana through their areas, taking out any Talon members and (hopefully) capture the Widowmaker if they could locate her, and bring her back into Overwatch custody. Hanzo was meant to stay back and keep watch whilst this was going down.

  
They all placed their comm devices in their left ears, placed the active buttons on accessible areas, and signed off to each other. Mei stopped Hanzo before he left, grabbing at his arm momentarily with her soft glove.

 

He turned and looked at her with dark eyes, a questioning and yet not so stern look on his face.

 

“Don’t get yourself killed out there,” Mei muttered.

 

“I don’t plan on it.”

 

The group parted ways to their areas of effect, Hana sticking with Mei while they waited at their point. It was a large building they were infiltrating -- a warehouse that took up nearly an acre of the local lands. It was bigger than many of the city buildings Mei had ever encountered, as most of the buildings she had witnessed went _up_ , not across a football-field sized piece of city. They hid in their points, though. She knew Hanzo could climb, too, and with such mobility and plenty of space to get around, she didn’t doubt his skills one bit.

 

She could hear, from the back entrance of the warehouse’s lot, that Hanzo was snipping Talon soldiers here and there, she could _hear_ bodies dropping, equipment shattering, until it got more and more distant. Hanzo was on the prowl, killing silently and singularly, until she could hear the comms click on.

 

“I’ve cleared the outermost area of the warehouse,” Hanzo muttered into the channel, “Lena, it is your opportunity.”

 

“Got it, on my way, love.” Tracer replied, before the channel went silent once more. They were to hold their point until Tracer was to give them the go or information. In the meantime, Mei had time to burn, but she was always ready to be on the lookout. There was a reason for this, as well-- it was not just for her personal safety, but Hana was her teammate. Although Hana was a soldier like her and had been through her fair share of trauma, Mei couldn’t help but take the caring approach. No matter how much of a soldier Hana was, Mei viewed her as still young. A mech-driving girl at the age of 19, with only a pistol and no mech, sitting beside her ready to take people out as if she were made out of indestructible concrete. It was worrying, and Mei wanted to do her best to make sure Hana made it out alive, made it back _home_ to her family at Gibraltar and her friends, to the comfort of her own bed. Though Mei knew that Hana knew what she had signed up for when she joined Overwatch, Mei couldn’t help but feel the way she did.

 

After a good half an hour in full silence, watching for any changes in scenery, Hana finally gave Mei a nudge and smiled.

 

“Soo,” Hana muttered, that cheeky grin on her face; Mei knew it meant trouble, “About those Australian newbies…”

 

“Oh, not you, too,” Mei replied quietly, “Is this really the time?”

 

“Well, we have plenty of time to waste, I think. I wanna hear about it, come on! It’s not like we’re blind to the obvious.”

 

“They’re… friends, of mine.”

 

“Liar.”

 

Mei felt her cheeks warm. “N-no, seriously. They’re… really close friends. They’re ex-junkers.”

 

“Tracer said they’re terrorists.”

 

“I--”

 

Well, that wasn’t exactly _wrong,_ but Mei knew that they were Junkers, in it for the money and that was all. They didn’t _care_ who they killed, and well. They were fighting for Overwatch now, just like Mei. That should count for something, shouldn’t it?

 

“They work for us now,” Mei finally replied, “And if that doesn’t give you a clue about how they really are, then I can’t help you.”

 

Hana seemed to giggle at that, and Mei had to look back and put a gloved hand over her mouth.

 

“Hana!” She whispered, “Be quiet, you’ll blow our cover--”

 

“From what? The dead bodies?” Hana replied, moving closer to the other, “You liiike them, don’t you?”

 

Mei was about to reply, but she heard the comms come on again.

 

“I got into the main terminals, but they’re locked tight-- I’m trying to get the hacker in now. Hanzo, think you can track around an’ see if the Widow’s around here and keep me covered?”

 

“Affirmative. Moving to your location.”

 

Mei and Hana held their breaths, waiting. Mei listened in-- there was a whole lot of silence.  Mei let go of Hana’s mouth, finally moving to peek around the entrance gate to look at the land -- there were bodies of Talon soldiers, all stacked by the bushes in the back. It was obviously Hanzo’s doing, as there were scattered and broken arrows laying about near them, and an arrow holding the corpses together. It slightly horrified Mei that someone so calm and collected could do such a thing, but she supposed you would eventually become numb to fighting such people who murdered and bludgeoned innocent people for a day job.

 

Becoming numb to people who could kill others in cold blood, never taking a second look back.

  
It struck a nerve in Mei, but only for a second, before she heard the hiss of a distant grappling hook -- one that stopped Mei dead in her tracks. Hana wanted to question what was going on, but Mei moved a hand back to idly hold the other behind the wall they’d been hiding in, Mei’s eyes watching the woman’s silhouette carefully. She knew who it was the moment she’d seen the glint of a metal helmet -- the Widowmaker had been called to come deal with the situation, and Mei was sure she would take her down this time. Not only did she have the motivation to end this woman’s life, for once in her own, but the Widowmaker had done horrible things and had tried to kill not only her, but Tracer and her friends as well. The Widowmaker was the enemy -- and she was the one who would fall tonight.

 

Mei moved back, hiding behind the wall the moment she noticed the Widowmaker scanning around her area. She held Hana back gently, signing to get Hana onto comms. Hana watched her for a moment, those eyes taking in what Mei was signing, before she nodded and moved her comm mic close, her gun pressed to her chest.

 

“Lena,” Hana whispered, “Widow’s outside on the backside, with me and Mei… She’s moving towards your location.”

 

“Ten-four, which way is she going?”

 

Mei squatted down, moving to peer around the corner as best she could without being spotted. The Widowmaker was looking at something -- a small screen in her hands? Mei couldn’t tell.

 

“127, she’s going towards the back entrance, but she’s stalling at the moment… Hanzo, keep on watch.” She whispered, “What the hell is she doing..”

 

“Think you can stall her? We have the intel at half way, we just need a little more time!”

 

Mei watched the Widowmaker put her screen away, taking her rifle into hand as she started to walk away, towards the warehouse building.

 

“Tracer, me and Hana are meant to attack defensively --- you think we can take her on?”

 

“Of course you can! I believe in you two. If it’s too dangerous, hang back and call for backups, I’ll make sure to get this intel safe with Hanzo.”

 

“Affirmative. I have her back, Mei-san.”

 

Mei took a deep breath.

 

“Ten four.” Mei muttered, looking back to Hana, “Call the mech, I’ll go in and stall her while you wait.”

 

She looked back at Hana. Mei was going to make perfectly sure that Hana was going home, that she was getting to see Lucio and her friends and family after this. Making sure that she was _safe._ She had to.

 

Mei gave a small wave to Hana as she nodded, Hana taking out her activator and turning it on, waiting for her Mecha to catch up. Mei took the opportunity to leave the area, watching the Widowmaker’s graceful steps towards the back entrance to the warehouse. Mei readied her endothermic blaster, and aimed it.

 

The second her ice wall blocked the doorway, the Widowmaker visible stiffened, before turning around, a disgruntled and upset expression on her face.

 

“Oh. Te voilà. I thought I heard someone,” The Widowmaker spoke, almost disturbingly calm as she set her rifle on her shoulder, “So you are the one who is trying to disturb the local Talon agents, hm?”

 

Mei pulled her ammunition out of her blaster, taking out another canister and shoving it inside.

 

“We have some unfinished conversations, miss.” Mei replied to the Widowmaker’s cold voice, with her much more frustrated and irritated voice, “You are unforgivable, what you have been doing.”

 

“Mh, is that so, _mignon_? Is my work here so bad that you must find reason to kill me?”

 

“I am not here to kill you,” Mei spoke as she listened halfway for Hana’s mech, “My job is to take you into custody and make sure that you _never_ ruin the Omnic and Human relations ever again. You are a fiend.”

 

The Widowmaker laughed at such an accusation, steadying herself on her nimble feet, rifle leaned to the ground.

 

“ _Ma biche_ , you are gravely mistaken. I am only doing my job, is that so terrible? I am no different than you or your little companions. I know the only thing they are good at is killing rich, better-off people in cold blood and never looking back. Are we so different?”

 

Mei’s breath hitched in reply. She didn’t know how much longer she could go on communicating with this woman, as she was striking nerves Mei never knew she even had. But it was the Widowmaker -- she would _not_ listen to someone like her.

 

“You are wrong. We are different. We fight for a just cause, a good one that makes sure people are safe and secure.”

 

“A ‘just’ cause is subjective, and you know this. Do you not think those who work under Talon do not have families to feed, people to care for?”

 

Mei growled. “No, they do. But I know most certainly that you _don't.”_

 

The Widowmaker shifted to that, moving to start pressing buttons on her belt. Mei could tell she had said the wrong words in the heat of her concealed anger.

 

“I am done here,” Widowmaker spoke softly, moving to pull out a small vial. “It is time for me to finish my job -- may you find redemption among the clouds, my dear.”

 

Mei was going to reply, but she realized too slowly what the Widowmaker was doing -- the moment she threw the mine down towards Mei, and it latched onto the ground, she had to find a way to get away from it. It activated too quickly, and she felt the sting of it enter her lungs as she breathed and the burn of it on her eyes. It was painful, more painful than the almost-killing shot of the Widowmaker’s previous assassination attempt. She coughed, stumbling back in an attempt to get away, as she heard the Widowmaker’s grappling hook. Moments later, Mei felt a bullet in her back -- and the shouts from Hana as the hiss of her endothermic canister came undone. Snowball bleeped and blooped as Mei felt her world freeze around her, silent and paused.

 

It felt like that long time in the Cryogenic Array. Like her life, but this time consciously, flashed before her eyes, her memories going back and forth to the past few days, before she heard the distant sound of something solid penetrating whatever had darkened her world.

  
It was moments later before Mei finally was freed from whatever was grasping her, feeling a sharp, pin-like feeling towards her side as she fell to the ground, her hands weakly coming to catch herself, her legs shaky. She could hear fighting from inside, bullets flying and yelling and the entire jargon of it all. It calmed the ringing in her ears, her head hurting as she heard interference on the comms.

 

“ _Warīhum quwitak_! Get in there, Mei!”

 

It was an older woman’s voice. She couldn’t make it out very well, the first part, but she understood the second part. It wasn’t familiar, but whatever she had just been shot with was going to do her good, running the blood through her veins and clearing her mind to a more conscious state. Mei picked herself up.

 

“Your endothermic canister has been destroyed, but you’ve got the mobility -- they’re in trouble, I’ve got your back.”

 

Mei shook away the remaining sluggish feelings from her, pulling that needle from herself and looking at it. It was cold.

 

“...Who are you?” Mei asked, her shaky hand on her comm device.

 

“A friend,” The woman answered, “Now get in there and do some damage!”

 

Mei waited, debating her choices, but this was cut short by the familiar hollars of a friend. A yell in Korean, and the sounds of something metal being destroyed. Mei had to get in there, she had to finish what she had started.

 

Her heavy legs didn’t feel so heavy anymore, and the beeping of Snowball was the only comforts she needed as she went inside, hurried herself as her eyes quickly caught on. There was mess, everywhere -- there were boxes of weapons and bombs and general items scattered about, shelves were knocked over, Talon corpses littered the floor like the familiar snowflakes from winter. Mei was haunted by the sight, but it was replaced as she saw Hana taking cover behind one of the shelves, reloading her small rifle before running back out. She looked like she was a mess. Hana called out, blinking her way to and fro to make sure to avoid any midfire.

 

“Everyone, come on, evacuate! We’re running out of ammo and this place is goin’ to hell!”

 

Hana moved to hide once more, and Mei joined her ideas behind one of the unfallen shelves, hearing the pit patter of Hanzo above her, hanging on one of the higher shelves.

 

“What about the mission! We had to capture the Widowmaker--”

 

“I am out of arrows, Hana, and we are running low on ammunition!” Hanzo cursed, “This is no time to be arguing!”

 

Mei listened in to their bickering, as she heard the distant wirr of the Widowmaker’s grappling hook -- something she knew would haunt her -- as the sound of another large box tipping over.

 

Hana’s scream made the blood leave Mei’s entire body, made her heart and mind feel like ice. It was the first time in so many years, that Mei was more determined than ever to go after something. She didn’t have any more endothermic fire -- she only had Snowball, and a moment's notice to end things. With the Widowmaker going up, she heard the pang of an unknown rifle, but Mei took the chance to turn the corner, snatching snowball from her destroyed canister and throwing him up. She only needed one command to handle this.

 

“ _Dòng zhù! Bùxǔ zǒu_!” She yelled to her robot, who immediately recognized the command and started the blizzard with his ice, Mei watching in fear as Hana was moved away from the boxes, and Widowmaker had gotten caught; she had ran into Snowball as she had tried to escape, and the moment she knew that she had gotten it.

 

Mei pulled herself from the situation, to run after those boxes that had fallen, Hana shivering and trembling as she looked at the destroyed wooden crate, the weapons having fallen out all over the ground. Mei stepped around it to snatch Hana into her arms, picking her up and holding her tightly as she heard the room drop silent.

 

Hanzo’s pit-pattering was distant, and Tracer’s chrono accelerator turned on and made the familiar flicker, and she could hear from the other side of the shelves the sound of a bow drawing, a gun being reloaded one last time.

 

Mei looked to Hana, who let out a shaky breath and hugged her, her bubbly voice no longer so loud. Mei felt relief wash over her.

 

Mission completed.

 

\---

 

Mei felt nerves as they left that warehouse, Hana being held gently to her side, whilst Hanzo held a tight grip on the wrists of the captured French woman. The heels clicking and wobbly, the Widowmaker injured enough to where escape was no longer an option. Hanzo had made sure of that. Tracer was tousled, and pretty banged up, but the only thing genuinely damaged was a wing on her armor and a crack in her goggles. She looked tired, but relieved.

 

When they met 76 and Mercy nearby with a hovercraft, they were prompted with immediate healing and asked plenty of questions, some unnamable Overwatch soldiers infiltrating the warehouse to scan for any more Talon agents and to gather as much useable equipment as possible.

 

When asked for the intel, Tracer couldn’t reply. She searched her person, before the guilt dropped over the group; they had forgotten to grab the Intel, as they had been ambushed by the Widowmaker so easily.

 

Mei had been informed that her endothermic canister had actually frozen and healed her -- in a giant icicle that Hana couldn’t retrieve her from before being sent off. Snowball was retrieved, and the Overwatch agents searched for the intel to no avail. Mei felt disheartened, but not beaten, as she knew the Widowmaker had been caught because of her.

 

Though, she was still haunted by the woman over comms. She didn’t know who she was, or why she had helped them. She only knew that the woman had been there for her, when things were growing dim and opportunities were far and few. She wished she could’ve thanked her, but the woman had obviously not come back to the comms channel since her last (assumable) shot towards Hana to protect her and speed her up. Not only the woman’s words, but the Widowmaker’s words echoed in her head, as Mei got on the hovercraft, watching soldiers file from a separate one, the door closing on her. It was beginning to be morning, the sky turning a warm orange that gave her mixed feelings. She felt a pit in her stomach, looking at all the dead Talon agents as they flew away.

 

_Numb to people who could kill others in cold blood, never taking a second look back._

 

She felt cold, both inside and out.

 

\---

 

When they returned to HQ, they were greeted with open arms. Well, Hana and the others were. Mei stayed in the hovercraft’s entrance, watching as Hanzo was greeted by that familiar cowboy, McCree, and Hana was greeted by a spinning hug from Lucio. It made Mei smile, the way he was so worried about her, Hana talking his ear off as he scooped her up and tossed her around, so happy to know that she was back.

 

Tracer was helping Widowmaker off the hovercraft, and there was a certain darkness to her eyes that Mei couldn’t name -- it was scary to see the girl so serious. When everyone was gone, Mei was told to leave the hovercraft, and she complied. She felt.. Oddly disturbed from the whole situation. Her first mission seemed to have gone so well, and yet, it almost had gone to Hell in a handbasket, if it hadn’t been for the stranger.

 

Mei left the area where the hovercrafts were left, and she walked and walked, with that strangely empty feeling in her heart. The pit in her stomach that refused to go away, as a million words floated and echoed in her head, as if every ghost in existence was trying to make her go insane. She ended up finding herself outside the boundaries of the fallen HQ, her legs finally feeling weak and tired. She sat down in the grass nearby, moving to pull her legs up close.

 

She felt tired. She felt empty. She felt gloomy, once again, even though she had so much to be proud of and look forward to.

 

Mei sat like that for a long time, her eyes watching the sun slowly rising over the horizon of the town, seeing that peachy tone starting to turn into a sunflower one, melting and pouring into the reds, the clouds covering up a part of the sunrise. From the corner of her eye, she saw a figure moving, hooded and lit with a blue triangle mask. She quickly stood, her heart jumping a bit as the figure left the shadows, the mask undoing and revealing a tuft of white hair, a braid peaking from the hood.

 

It was an older woman, a sniper rifle tied to her back, as she put her hands up innocently, stepping towards Mei. Mei felt the breath catch in her throat, her body freezing in place as the woman continued until she was a comfortable range of closeness.

 

“Do not be afraid,” The familiar voice whispered, “It is only me. I am a friend”

 

_I am a friend._

 

Mei let out the held breath.

 

“You… you’re the woman from before, aren’t you? Why did you help me?”

 

The woman laughed, softly and motherly, as she dug into her pocket. Mei watched her with a cautious curiosity, as a small gadget was pulled from her pocket.

 

“It is not important at the moment,” the woman said, “What is important is that you get the information Lena worked so hard to aquire.”

 

She set the intelligence device into Mei’s gloved hand, smiling to her softly and tenderly. Mei watched her with dark eyes before taking the device, looking at it. When she looked back up, the woman was walking away.

 

“W-wait!” Mei called, “Who are you? Why are you doing this?”

 

The woman turned back, and nonchalantly waved.

 

“I told you, I am a friend. Do not worry,” She smiled, “We will meet again soon. Until then, night night.”

 

Mei sucked in a breath, before she saw the woman pull out a gun and point it to her, shooting it quickly. Mei felt a needle in her torso, her mind suddenly becoming fogged before her world turned black.

 

When Mei woke up minutes later, her hair tousled with grass and leaves, the hooded woman was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh some things some people might not know:
> 
> Nian - A monster legend from China, that used to eat people and animals on the Chinese New Year.  
> Men Jiangnv - A woman in Chinese legend who "brought the great wall down with her tears", (She was also a real person!)  
> Susanoo and Yamato no Orochi - A Japanese legend of an eight-headed serpent that ate seven daughters of a family, eating on each year. Susanoo was the one who beheaded the serpent and made the river red with it's blood.  
> 127 - (code) 'Proceed with Caution'  
> Te voilà - There you are. (french)  
> Mignon - Cutie (french)  
> Ma biche - My pet (french)
> 
> Please correct me if any of these are wrong, I know just enough research to attempt to use these, but I can edit things and sources if needed. <3


	10. Touch of Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gosh, guys, can you believe it! Along with the Overwatch Big Bang, I started writing up and updating this again! I didn't think I'd ever come back to it, but I've had a "change of heart" (lol) and I've decided I'm going to finish this darn fanfic whether it kills me or not. This and the next chapter are to be the FLUFF OF ALL FLUFF, so be prepared. I got feels writing these chapters.

Mei picked herself up from the hill outside, looking over the city. She looked to her hand where the intelligence chip sat, given to her by that hooded woman she still didn’t know. Her words haunted Mei, to this very moment. She was so… cryptic with her language.

 

_ I am a friend. We will meet again very soon. _

 

What was that supposed to mean? What the hell was  _ any _ of what had gone on supposed to mean? Mei couldn’t answer that as she calmed herself down, and walked from that entrance to go inside. Her head was filled with a million different things, but she had things to do. Things to  _ handle. _ She had a job to do, and that was more important than anything else in the world, beside maybe one or two things.

 

Mei heard Snowball blinking on her bag, knowing she was still so filled with questions and concerns. She shrugged it off, telling Snowball it was fine. She didn’t need her pet robot to be concerned for her right now. Mei continued to repeat this to herself as she went in HQ, before she bumped into someone as she came inside -- and a red serape came to her face. Mei stumbled, nearly dropping the intel chip until a hand came to her arm and balanced her, a lighthearted chuckle emitting from the man she’d run into.

 

“Howdy, there, don’t getch’er self in a twist there, missy,” McCree laughed, “Didn’t mean t’run into ya.”

 

Oh. It was McCree. She hadn’t really gotten to talk to him yet -- he seemed social though, so it was bound to happen at some point. She laughed a little. His smile was contagious. Mei simply straightened herself up, nodding to him.

 

“No, don’t apologize; it was my fault,” She chuckled, “I’m sorry -- I can assume you’re that cowboy ‘McCree’ Hanzo was telling me about?”

 

His cheeks seemed to change color to that, the other letting out a full-fledged laugh, his gloved hand coming up a little; his mechanical hand didn’t, which Mei found peculiar, but she’d rather not ask. Everyone had their iffy subjects, and by the way McCree’s serape covered his arm, she could assume that was his.

 

“That, madam, would be completely true,” McCree let out a happy sigh, “He didn’t say anything bad about me, did he?”

 

“No, only that you smell like dirt and trees.”

 

“Is that right?”

 

Mei covered her nose with a hand teasingly, “Oooh, it’s so bad, do you thing he ever bathes?”

 

By the accent she was mimicking, it was obvious she was making fun at Hanzo, and it only took a moment before McCree snorted. 

 

“Yeah, that sounds like somethin’ he’d say.” He said as he tipped his hat, “Well, I’d better letcha go. I got an archer I gotta go pamper, and you looked like you were in a hurry. Catcha later, uh--”

 

“Mei. Mei-Ling.”

 

“Mei! Seeya later, Mei.” 

 

She watched the cowboy walk off, and she let out a sigh. The small conversation had calmed her nerves a little, and Snowball beeped happily. Mei thought about it for a moment -- the two seemed fond of each other. Maybe it was one of those little things you find joy in whilst in a stressful situation?

 

No, the answer looked pretty obvious -- either they were just really close friends, or the cowboy and the archer were a thing.

 

Mei giggled at the idea as she walked back in the direction of where she’d been going. She made her way upstairs of the main building, hearing a room not far off being messed with. Heavy footsteps gave her the confirmation she’d needed. The halls of the main building were much paler than downstairs, and there were metallic doors covering every which way. She found the one with the most heavy sounds to them, and she knocked on the door gently. Winston came to the door -- it only took her a few minutes, as most of the people upstairs were busy -- and after some conversing, Mei gave him the intel chip. She debated whether or not to tell him about the hooded woman, and after some debating, she decided against it, considering the woman mentioned she would be coming back. Though the decision still haunted her as she left the room, her mind came to other things that were more important.

 

She still needed to talk to Junkrat -- it was something she had been procrastinating on, as much as she didn’t want to. But she had to do it. She knew that much, but when she thought about it, the last time she had seen Junkrat, he hadn’t seemed too thrilled to be around. And considering the look on his face, she remembered, he was probably real wary about being in Overwatch; but if what everyone was saying was right, that meant that he had  _ sacrificed _ doing what he had been just to be  _ there _ and with  _ her. _ It was something that made her heart skip a small beat, and she felt a warmth inside her chest at the thought. Junkrat was there because of her, wasn’t he? He was there because  _ she _ was here.

 

Mei took a breath, thought about where Junkrat had been and where Roadhog said he would’ve gone -- if he wasn’t with Roadhog, he’d be alone. Although rare, she knew Roadhog would be busy doing  _ something _ today, whether that be looking around or helping something. Junkrat would be doing… something, or sleeping. Probably.

 

Probably.

 

\---

 

The notion wasn’t wrong. But he hadn’t been worrying about anything, tried not to think about it. Every instance his brain would wander to her, he’d find himself more frustrated than before; sleeping was incredibly impossible for him, and trying to find something to do without socializing with someone was even more difficult. He’d ended up only talking to two people, reservedly so -- Roadhog, of course, but he was also ‘busy’ with leaving to go explore a little, or he’d be reading, and just quietly chat to Jamie.

 

Junkrat had also found solace in talking to Lúcio, who was more kind than annoying, unlike everyone else to Junkrat. He’d speak to him a little while coming back to his room, and one of the hours that Mei had been gone, he’d actually been able to snake his way into Junkrat’s quarters, and Junkrat told him about the bombs he’d been making. That’s also how Junkrat learned about this wonderful thing called bath bombs -- and Lúcio promised to bring him some next time he’d come out.

 

Though, as nice as Lúcio was, and as close as Roadhog was, neither of them would’ve ever made him feel the way he had when he’d been talking to Mei, her soft voice coaxing him to sleep, her little snores being the thing that made him feel drowsy, her giggle being the nicest thing he’d heard besides the sound of an explosion on a bank. It was like she was suffocating everything he’d ever held precious and replaced them with things infinitely better, and he was thankful for those. At the same time, he felt it was a damned curse that he’d barely gotten to see her, felt it was unfair that she spent so much time with Roadhog.

 

It were these racing thoughts that filled his mind constantly. He’d used the more spare time to tinker with his bombs, even if they were already built and ready. He used that little table nearby, his leg crossed under the prosthetic peg as he tinkered. He’d reengineer the trinkets, bombs, he’d rebuild them, he’d even taken his arm off at one point to mess with. He needed things to keep him busy, to keep things off his mind. 

 

Which was why, when the door to his quarters opened, he hadn’t moved. He hadn’t been on edge -- he was way too delved into the tiny table he’d been sitting at for… hours? He hadn’t been counting. His fingers weren’t cooperating with him either, they were shaking and wouldn’t follow what he wanted them to do, and his mechanical arm almost seemed like it was malfunctioning. It was frustrating, to watch his contraptions not go together because  _ he _ simply couldn’t get it right.

 

Mei’s voice, asking for his name, made him jump in his seat. Her voice was so soft, and she was meekly standing at his door, almost like she’d been a misplaced rabbit. He let out a breath, sitting back into his seat and getting readjusted. It was ridiculous - he was so out there, he just wanted to feel better. He didn’t know  _ how _ to feel better, which was the first problem. He and Mei kept quiet for a while, before he heard those familiar, clunky boots taking a step towards where he was sitting. Junkrat tried not to look curious.

 

“...So,” Mei said, “What are you making?”

 

_ Be honest. Don’t shut her out. _

  
“Some stuff,” Junkrat replied.

 

“What kind of stuff?”

 

_ Don’t mess this up. _

 

“ _ Stuff.” _

 

  
“...Oh.” Mei’s voice grew quieter, almost a little sad as she stood straight up, looking around.

 

_ Dammit. _ __   
  


“How was the mission?..”

 

Mei pepped up a bit. “Oh, the mission? It went as planned! We got the intel, and the Widowmaker is captured, and we are all fine. Nobody got seriously hurt.”

 

“That’s good…”

 

To be fair, Junkrat could’ve give a single fuck less about the rest of the group, but he was glad that she was okay, that she wasn’t hurt. He glanced back with his dark eyes to trail her movements, before she finally sat down politely on his bed by him, looking at him.

 

“Have things been okay here? Are you settling in?”

 

Junkrat leaned back, rolling his eyes.

 

“Yea, but it’s been a fuckin’ hassle. People always gettin’ in ‘ya business! How do ya deal with it?” He asked, looking to her for a genuine answer. Her small smile was something that made his heart melt, and he tried so hard not to smile back, though he cracked slightly under pressure. Mei watched the corner of his lips twitch a little in return.   
  


Happy, Mei chimed to the other, “I love most of these people; they’re all kind, like the family many of us did not have.”

 

“I s’ppose you’re right, but still, they’re always getting in’ta my business.” Junkrat huffed, “Only person I like bein’ in my business is you and Roadie.”

 

Mei seemed to pause for a moment, before leaning over to him with a grin. He glanced back, before feeling his face grow a little warm.

 

“W-what?”

 

“Aww, Junkie…”   
  


“I-I just care about ya, okay? Don’t be gettin’ all comfy cozy with me, mate..”

 

“And almost sleeping with you was not ‘comfy-cozy’ with you?”

 

“...A-alright, point taken.”

 

Mei watched him for a moment, before giving him a nudge and laughing to herself.

 

“You are so easy to press, Jamie, you are almost like a -”

 

Mei couldn’t finish her sentence, because a mechanical arm was grabbing her hoodie and snatching her over. She could only suck in a breath before she felt those dry, smaller lips on hers, her heart doubling over and her body jolting a little at the suddenness of it. She could only pause, a few seconds to take it in, before she leaned into it, a mitten-covered hand moving to Junkrat’s bare shoulder, pulling him closer. She hummed, feeling that bare, human hand moving up to her hair to pull the pin out of it, the cold-tipped hair dancing past her hoodie and spilling to her shoulders like a brown sea.

 

He let go of the hoodie to hold her closer, Mei scooting a bit to hold his other shoulder-- they had gotten much closer, the warmth of the situation finally overpowering her; she pulled away to breath, Junkrat hugging her and burying his face in her shoulder. Mei laughed breathlessly, Junkrat listening to it like a harp at sea, holding her close to his body as if she would disappear the moment he pulled away.

 

“Did you miss me?”

 

“Like Hell…”

 

Mei smiled, ruffling Junkrat’s dusty hair, moving to pull his head back and press her lips to his forehead. He made a disgruntled noise, before finally glancing up at her shyly; she could see the rosy tint on his pale cheeks, and she moved one hand to cup his cheek. Junkrat leaned into it, finally moving to sit back on his bed and hoist Mei into his lap. She had squeaked out a little, holding onto Junkrat while he had done so, before she glanced down.

 

He grinned, having accidentally gotten a face-full of her boobs whilst hoisting her up, and she had clutched him. Mei’s face bloomed as she shoved him back, her hair falling in her face.

 

“J-Junkrat! What the Hell!”

 

“It was an accident, I’m sorry- Don’t hit me!-”

 

“You’re such a pervert!”

 

“I love you, stop hittin’ me!”

 

That caused Mei to stir, Mei moving to sit up straight and look at Junkrat, who’s eyes grew wide and his face to bloom in a hard color; Mei simply watched as the other tried to come up with a desperate excuse. She felt her heart rate pick up, and she moved to cup Junkrat’s face fully with both her hands. It stopped his yammering, for the moment, and she quickly leaned down to kiss the other in fervor, their lips crashing together like puzzle pieces. Her plump ones against his thin ones, Junkrat hitched physically, his hands coming up to hold hers, the haze coming over the both of them again.

 

Junkrat ended up taking the initiative, moving Mei over to fumble, where her breath fell from her red lips like lyrics to an unspoken song Junkrat was begging to hear. He had moved her to sit back against the pillows, and the taller other quickly moved up to capture her lips again, sitting himself between her legs so that she wasn't suffocating his body. Soon, her gloves had been taken off, and bare and cold hands felt at his bare shoulders, some of the most skin-to-skin contact they'd had since the first night they'd been together, since the night they had hesitated to go any farther than before.

 

Mei was practically shaking; all of this attention, directed to her. It was killing her, somewhat. To be there, breathing everything that Junkrat was, in; a constant hum of energy and warmth between them that she hasn't ever felt before. She knew it wasn't going to move much farther than this; Junkrat wouldn't force her into something like that.

 

But he was getting quite affectionate, moving her neck slightly to find himself between the fur and her soft, snowy skin, his lips tracing every crevasse it could to make her tummy flutter. She hummed, her arms snaked their way around Junkrat’s neck, and she breathed out, holding Junkrat’s body close to her own.

 

“J-Jamie… We can't…”

 

“Can't what?”

 

“D-do  _ that _ …”

 

“Wasn't plannin’ on it, love.”

 

She sighed in relief as Junkrat pulled away, moving to set his forehead to hers, her bangs bunching up between them. Mei let out a pant, Junkrat catching his breath as well, as she looked up to him. His bright eyes gazed back at her before he fell to a fit of quiet and exaggerated giggles, pleased with how disheveled Mei had become.

 

“I love you.” Mei muttered out. Junkrat smiled that wide and toothy grin, the gold tooth shining bright under his now-flushed lips.

 

“Took ya that long t’say it?”

 

“ _ Shut up _ ,” Mei snickered, moving to playfully shove him.

 

She sighed, cuddling close with Junkrat laying in her arms, his mechanical arm and human arm warm under her hips to hold her in their embrace. It was… calm. Quiet. Something neither of them knew they needed, really.

 

Junkrat eventually settled to nuzzle into her, cozy and comfortable in her warmth whilst they laid on top of the bed. Mei finally looked to the time, after a few minutes, and sighed.

 

“Jamie.”

 

“Mh?”

 

“I need to get up..”

 

“Why?”

 

“I have to go examine my lab and make changes… I have to before tonight or Mercy will be irritated with me.”

 

Junkrat huffed in protest, moving closer to her before giving her a peck on her face, moving away to humm and sit up. She sighed, searching for her rubber band idly while she watched Junkrat sit up. He sat back on his peg leg and his human leg, looking her over. She was disheveled quite a bit, and in an odd way, he found it adorable; her face was tinged with rosy colors, the tip of her nose especially, her lips plump from being kissed at so much. She lazily gathered her moppy hair up into a round and springy bun, parts falling out easily and making it look just as messy as the rest of her looked.

 

Mei moved to get up, stretching when she did so.

 

“You gonna be okay in here tinkering by yourself?”

 

“Bah,” Junkrat retorted, waving his mechanical hand in dismissal, “‘ve been tinkerin’ since before ya came back. M’fine.”

 

Mei sighed, nodding to him.

 

“Here… I'll be off, then.”

 

She waited a few moments, watching over him happily with a warmth in her being,  before she left the room without another word.

  
Junkrat waited until her figure had shut the door, a few seconds passing as he moved to flop on his bed, pulling a spare side pillow to his face to huff into it. His heart had been racing the whole time, and he felt like his worlds were colliding with each other once she had left. He didn’t even feel the need to tinker -- he was too preoccupied with the thoughts of her, and even if he’d gotten a little carried away with her, he hadn’t thought anything like the usual. Junkrat’s entire thought process had been taken over by the woman, and by the time he’d gotten over it, he had realized how much of an impact she’d made in such little time.

 

He plucked himself from his heavy bed, and he guided himself up, ignoring all of his tinkerings left on that nearby table. The few parts that had made it to his bed. He ignore all of it, even if his mind kept trying to drag back to them -- he at least wanted to thank her, tell her he loved her, something,  _ anything. _


	11. Through Nirvana

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I finally got around to finishing Part 1... What a ride. I'll be going back and editing the earlier chapters before I start on Part 2, but for now, you at least have this chunk of the story completed! Thank you to those who are still reading, a year after the initial release.

It hadn’t taken her long, by any means, to get to her lab. It was  _ her _ lab, too. Free for her to fill with knowledge, books, anything she wanted. Free and empty cork boards, the greatest amount of electronics she’d ever seen gathered in one place, plenty of tables with holographics and touch pads for her use; plenty of places to sit and write about her thoughts and her findings, her search for the proof and aid she needed to fix her planet. She wanted to cry when she had seen that interactive holomap of the earth and all it’s plethora of information. Mei even had her own database that was for her access only.

 

Mei did find the room lonely, however. When she looked at it, she found that it felt almost like her first job in Antarctica -- the room was desolate, cold, devoid of human interaction or any signs of life. It was like the place hadn’t been ever inhabited before, and whether or not that was a blessing or a curse, Mei couldn’t put her finger on it. The mood was that of the rest of HQ -- the room was silver and white, the floor littered with a yellow edge that seemed to circle the room’s perimeter. There was a board nearby for her to write on, though it seemed to be pushed to the side. Much of it had dust on it, and looked like the usage date had long since passed. The room reminded her of something distant, but she couldn’t remember what.

 

There was no hesitation when she began --- she pulled herself together, and began to tidy the place up. What information she had been left was all organized into the surrounding shelves and the dust that had collected was dispelled as best she could. It gave her time to think, to swallow what had happened in such a short period of time --- both between her, her friends, and her… relations. It was all like the world Mei had grown to love and save was passing by her each and every day.   
  
Whilst cleaning, Mei stumbled upon the closet that contained more items she would’ve never found otherwise -- what most heavily caught her attention was the old music player that was just stuffed away in the corner. Amongst old posters, significant intellectual texts, and some decor, was that relic, something Mei never imagined she’d get her hands on. It even needed a wall plug, which was something Mei questioned the current existence of anymore. It felt odd, looking at something like this. It’s base was made of wood, and it looked as though it was based off something even before when it was made, even if it played the disks that people used to burn music and other files onto. She found a slight affection for the item, and she set it on her holo table with the global informational map so that she could find use for it later.

  
Through more cleaning, she had gotten a good section of it tidied before she finally felt like she needed a break. She was tired, exhausted maybe, and though the jetlag had settled in the nights before, she wasn’t too keen on staying up much later than normal to do so. When she checked the clock on her main desk area, she gave out an exasperated sigh, running a hand through her hair.

 

3 o’clock AM, the time when she should be getting rest after such a tiring and big set mission. After dealing with captures and explosions and fire and… whatever the hell else would be thrown at her next. She jumped when the door opened, a set of heavy steps following it’s path. The shadow was large --- larger than most, and whoever it was had to lean down to get in the doorway. When her eyes  fell upon the figure, she smiled a little, a hand pressed to her heart. She could remember that silvery hair from anywhere, and the pig mask that stared her down with glassy eyes were something she’d become so lovingly accustomed to. It was less apprehensive and tense than her encounter with Junkrat, and she simply hummed as the other tried (and failed) to slip into the room easily, having to squish himself up a little to not knock anything over. The door automatically shut behind him, and he tried to stay stuck to the door, worried he might destroy something on accident.

 

Mei tenderly laughed, “Claustrophobic?”

 

“A little,” Roadhog finally replied, his voice a quiet rumble that gently struck Mei, and she waited patiently for him to find his path in. She watched the other struggle to fit into the area, as Mei was already accustoming the room to being eclectic and filled with small things, the decorations she had found littering the walls as something akin to what Junkrat would make. Mei smiled gently, as she saw Roadhog finally plant himself into the corner, her gaze never leaving his form.   
  
“So, ah…” Roadhog muttered, “What’re you even doing in here, Mei?”

 

“Cleaning, setting things up.”

  
“...At 3am?”   
  
“I wouldn’t be able to sleep, anyways.”

 

Roadhog grunted in reply, his chubby fingers moving to fumble and fidget with themselves. He had disposed of the armor earlier, she noticed, and he had found a tee shirt. It didn’t fit him -- it fit him like a shirt on Winnie the Pooh, showing the bottom half of his belly, and he had those gaudy blue camo pants that he always had. She waited for a moment, his eyes wandering the room as she stepped forward, hands reaching up to him like a child. His gaze drifted to her, and Roadhog bent down, allowing her to do as she pleased. Mei felt around his head, reaching for the clasps on his mask and letting all of them go, taking the mask off him. It was the size of her chest, and she turned the rubber mask around, looking through it. It smelled of him -- motor oil, and currently, the smallest twinge of tea. She’d keep it in mind. She set the mask on herself, looking through the large glass eyes. She wrapped a few looser straps around her bun, and put her hands on her hips.   
  
“Grr! I am the amazing and scary and overpowered Roadhog!---” She exclaimed, “I’m gonna hook ya and cook ya!”

 

She imitated an Australian accent -- poorly, at that -- as she made a pulling motion with her hands and finally, an exploding gesture. Roadhog watched, a smile coming to his face as he lowly chuckled; Mei joined him, and took the mask off, setting on the nearby lone table. Roadhog had finally started to fully grin around her, watching that small tooth poking from the bottom of his mouth, contrasting with the pinkness of his soft lips, the splotches on his face prominent in the light.

 

“Hey, what’s that over there?” Roadhog asked, pointing to the stash of miscellaneous items that seemed to plague a corner of the room, that of which was like a sore thumb in terms of how clean the rest of the laboratory looked. The younger of the two dragged herself from her side of the room to pick up the pile, which had been stuffed poorly into a cardboard box, and she quickly heaved it up, setting it down on the counter in front of the large Australian man.

 

He took a good eyeful of it, but what mostly caught his attention was the older music player that was buried by other loads of junk he honestly cared so little about. His large hands sifted through the objects that became discarded to the side, and he dragged the music player from his paper-y grave. Mei looked at him curiously, watching as thick fingers carefully moved the parts around, with intent to keep it intact.

  
“What year did this stuff even  _ come from? _ ” He asks, “Things like this would’ve been considered completely and utterly gone even when  _ I  _ was a child…”

 

Mei shakes her head. “No clue.. It was just sitting around in the closet and was  _ there _ amongst other things… I think I saw a few of the little disks that go on it in the bottom of the box, but I didn’t think any of it. One of them was broken, anyways.”

 

“What was it of? Do you know?” He asks; Roadhog seems to know a bit on the subject, Mei assumes, so she sets her hands to her hips and waits.

 

“Can’t recall, since I didn’t know what they were from. One of them had some pretty risque art on it though... and I think there was one from some time ago, before the 21st century, ah… What was it called, it had a bunch of letters in it, like Ace and Dice or something…”

 

“ACDC?”   
  
“Yeah! That one. That band is  _ so _ old!-”

 

“And yet, somehow I can still be a fan. Can I see the disks?”

 

“Is that what they’re called?” Mei questions softly, curious as ever to learn of Roadhog’s music tastes, as she moves more things over to dig into the box. Some items are falling to the floor at this point, but by now, she’s lost her reason to care. Roadhog and her both pull up stools (one of them having to be brought in from the kitchen by Mei, due to Roadhog’s size being too large and heavy for her poor wooden stool to handle) and begun to try and tinker with the music player. She was getting a little drowsy, sure, but nothing like figuring out a plug system for an early 21st century music player with one of the people she held a rather strong romantic and platonic connection to; they’d have to get Junkrat in on the thing tomorrow, but he would most likely turn the damn thing into a bomb.

 

They ended up getting it to work by plugging it into Mei’s computer module, after a little bit of searching and having to go steal some cords from a tech support woman who had only 3 hours of sleep and was basing her physical being off of her espresso cup; apparently there was still a market for these types of things, and people still regularly tried to use them, even though the technology was obsolete for 2081 and they could just holo-carry it, or use some headphones while they were out, or check their phones. She found the entire experience rather enjoyable, considering she got to learn both one of Roadhog’s favorite things to do  _ and _ his taste in music.

 

When they had finally had the disk ejector working as well, Mei slid over the disks in their makeshift little paper-based covers with artwork that had most likely been a rip-off reprint of some art from nearly 100 years ago. Roadhog was examining them with a sort of affection, one that Mei was certain confirmed that he was into that sort of thing, and she waited. His chubby, calloused fingers insert the disk into the hole, and the fake vinyl disk on the top starts to move. The case was on the desk -- it was yellow, and had an angel on the front of it, naked and baring herself to the world (quite literally) from her printly home case.

 

As the music starts to play, Roadhog pushes a few buttons, and he smiles lightly when the speakers weakly play the music-- it isn’t Mei’s favorite thing, especially with it being a drastically different taste than hers, but this song that they’re listening to currently has a sort of lulling tone to it, one that Mei is actually considering to be ‘not so bad’ on her own scale of judging music.

 

“What is this?” Mei asks out loud.

 

“Nirvana.”   
  
“Like that old Buddhist concept, or?”

 

He chuckles. “No, like the band. And the song is called ‘Heart Shaped Box’. I’m not a big fan of American music like this, but.. I used to have this CD before the Crisis.”

 

“Really?” Mei says, setting her head on the heel of her palm, “I didn’t have a lot of music stuff before everything went down.. I think I was still a child when the first Crisis happened. I liked Bach…”   
  
“That would make sense… I was a teenager when you were a child, so that fits, time-wise. I don’t even think I knew what omnium was at the time.”

 

“Funny how things were before the Crisis, yea?” Mei states, rubbing her cheek idly; her sleepiness was finally taking over, and as much as she wanted to continue staying up and half-flirting with the Australian, her body required a certain amount of rest every once in a while. She audibly yawns, earning a slow blink from the larger other, before there’s suddenly a bit of shuffling. The music is turned off with a gingerly care, and a hand comes to touch at her back. Considering the size difference, his hand takes up a majority of her back, and Mei looks up to see Roadhog’s flat expression watching her. She isn’t used to seeing it, as she’s used to either seeing the mask, or the rare glimpses where they didn’t hide anything from each other. It was a much deeper feeling than what she was feeling with Junkrat, but at the same time, she felt love for them equally in her squishy little heart.

 

She lets out a chuckle, and leans into the touch, letting out a quiet sigh.

 

Maybe being here, quiet and steady in the hands of someone who knows far more than she… Maybe it wasn’t so bad.

 

She could get used to this.


End file.
